All my works
by rinsegaku
Summary: All I had stored, feel free to use it
1. Lost Between a Fairy and Leafs - Ch2

_"If you can't remember something, it's like it never happened. Likewise, if something never happened, you can't remember it, and your memory might lie to you"_

Chapter 2: Naruto Dragneel Uzumaki

Kurama kept glaring at everything and everyone in the room but otherwise did nothing as he observed how Tsunade ran a diagnosis on the still unconscious Naruto, all the time dealing with the headache that preventing whatever the Uchiha tried to do in Naruto's mind caused.

"Stop glaring, you have no right to be mad with us."

"Oh, I do have every right to be mad. What, you thought that he would return, you would say _sorry_ and everything would be back to normal?" then he let out a disdainful snort "Please, even if he did come back with you he wouldn't have been the same… you lot changed him in ways you would never imagine, and left me to pick up the pieces!"

"You're not exactly free of blame, _Kyuubi_" Shikamaru sneered.

"Maybe not, maybe I caused as much damage as you, maybe even more, but you know a big difference? I was _there_ when he needed me, the only one he could talk with when everything was just too much for him to bare anymore… It was not enough that he lost so much with the war, you had to push him even further with-"

"We never meant to harm Naruto-Kun!" Hinata cried "We- We-"

"_We- We-"_ Kurama mocked her "If once you were the one I held more respect for, now you're the one I hate the most. You _knew _how special you were to him, you _knew_ how much he needed you, you _knew! _And how you returned that affection?"

"I-"

"The least you could have done was _shut the hell up_ when you realized it was _us_."

"Shut up! You have no right to-"

"Calm down Kiba," Sasuke said placing a hand over Kiba's shoulder, making him turn his glare towards him "We don't need more problems right now, and you know what he's saying is true… to an extent."

Kiba seemed to become more furious hearing that, but then he let out a sigh and let himself fall to the floor, Akamaru at his side the next second nuzzling his cheek trying to cheer him up.

Sakura seemed ready to start her own rant, but a look from Shikamaru and a shake of his head stopped her, then he also sighed and addressed the fox.

"Look, I know this was not the best approach, but after almost four years without news about him, some of us started to think that maybe he could have... that he would never return, so seeing a potential chance of him finally returning I-I... I didn't know what else to do."

Kurama gave some thought to what the Nara said, before giving a reluctant nod and letting some of the anger leave his face.

_That_ he could understand. After all, and despite all that had happened between them, they were friends trying to get one of their own back.

Even if Naruto's place was no longer with them.

"Fine… fighting each other won't do any good now. We better try to get along for the time being" He said with reluctance, making everyone nod while giving him funny looks.

"What?"

"Nothing," Sasuke said "it's just… bizarre to see you acting so civilized."

Kurama chuckled as if just been told an amusing joke.

"Look, I'm not the same demon that you remember, a lot has changed during the eleven years we-"

Only then Shikamaru noticed something he overlooked previously, given all the excitement they had gone through, but that now made no sense.

"Wait, eleven years? Wha-"

"The kid's fine" Tsunade grunted while wiping some sweat from her forehead "Now if you're done going at each other's throats, I still don't have the slightest idea of what's going on here. You lot entered _my_ office, through the window _and_ without permission, kicked Kakashi out to guard the door and shoved Naruto to me saying he needed a check-up… while being carried by a _tiny_ version of what I suppose is the Kyuubi. _Out of the seal_ _and flying. Start explaining."_

"Not yet" Kurama replied, "There are still things we have to make-"

"Look fox" she interrupted him while walking back to her desk "I've been waiting, _patiently,_ for more than enough time- don't give me that look, I don't give a rat's ass for who you are, you could be the Yondaime reincarnated for all that I care right now. I've waited four long years to see that mop of blond hair again and know what happened the day we used that damned seal from his own lips, so you better wake the kid up and start explaining what the _hell_ happened that day, or I swear Kumo will get another Bijuu via punch-delivery right now."

Then she flopped down on her chair, a long sigh escaping her lips as she rubbed her eyes with two fingers. When she spoke again, even if her voice still held the same hardness she expressed on her previous rant, fondness poked its head out too.

"The fastest we are done with explanations, the sooner I can make him sign the papers stating that he's no longer M.I.A. and reinstate him as a ninja of the village. This time he _is_ going to take the damned hat, the Uchiha brat proved not... _being able_ to handle the paperwork."

Said Uchiha had the decency to look slightly embarrassed, remembering a certain day filled with towers of paperwork, seas of fire and looooots of manic laughter.

Kurama had a general idea of the events that followed Tsunade's resignation, even if Naruto was only present for the fallout.

Yeah, even if they deny it Shinobi like gossiping.

The names of Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha had been immediately proposed for the spot by the council, Naruto being a given. He knew there would have been an uproar if the population got word that he hadn't been proposed, if not thanks to his impressive feats during the raging war then for being the 'Hero of Konoha' - much to the blond's pride and embarrassment - but the Uchiha? Now _that_ came as a surprise for everyone, including the raven himself, especially when the reason for said mention was because _'despite the injustices Konoha may have committed against his family, in the end, he decided to remain loyal, and that degree of commitment to atone for his faults is a commendable quality the village would appreciate from its leader.'_

Remain loyal? Ha! _He _had shown more loyalty to the village while he was sealed inside Naruto. The only thing about it was that Sasuke decided to follow Naruto like a lost puppy, and the elders _knew_ it. Their real reason? To put a leash on their last precious pair of Sharingan eyes.

Not enough reason to question the lucidity of the old coots? Then it was the fact that they proposed - more like already elected - the new village outcast as the leader.

True, it had not been an open dislike for Sasuke like it had been once for Naruto, but it was obvious who was more liked from the duo now.

While the greetings to Naruto were accompanied with warm smiles, for Sasuke there were only curt nods and scowls, or while kids were happy to be near their hero asking questions and demanding games of ninja, parents tried their best to keep their sons away from the raven.

There were many little details like those that made the answer clear. While Sasuke wouldn't be openly mistreated inside the walls of the village the people would walk on thin ice around him, waiting for the moment when he would snap… again.

Now, being still at war and under the banner of one shinobi alliance, instead of individual villages, every other Kage had a right to vote on the matter too, and even if for totally different reasons - Naruto had a lot of empathy… maybe too much to lead an entire army into what would most likely be a massacre - the outcome was the one the village elders expected. The problem with it? All this was done in the span of four days, the very same four days Naruto was out on an intelligence mission where any outside contact could endanger his position - his ability to create massive amounts of clones made him the _"perfect" _man for it - so he never knew he had even been nominated for the position until he returned.

"Meet us at the Hokage's office" Sasuke said seriously.

"But I have to report back to the war room about the mission, it was-" he stopped when Tsunade rose her hand, her expression troubled, as if she wished to say something to him, but then she just sighed and spoke with a resigned tone.

"This is a special situation, only for this time you'll report to the Hokage."

Naruto found the wording odd, and the whole situation… fishy, but just shrugged and followed them into the village, the whole time surrounded in tense silence.

As soon as they were inside the office, doors closed and privacy seals activated, it was Sasuke himself who voiced the words that felt like a punch to his gut.

"They chose me as Rokudaime, Naruto."

"W-wha… Who-"

"_They,_ Naruto" Sasuke growled "The war council, the kages, the elders… _they…_"

Naruto turned his head towards Tsunade, eyes wide and teary seeking… whatever she could say to ease his whirling mind, but she just nodded letting out another sigh, looking through the window towards the village.

"With Madara on the scene now we are losing too many soldiers out in the fields… we are practically sending them straight into slaughter just to buy us some more time. I needed to step in, as a medic I _can't_ allow this to keep going, so I resigned as Hokage just like Gaara did as Kazekage so I could support the troops directly in battle. The moment I surrendered the hat I lost every right to vote at the war council… Sorry Naruto."

Naruto just started to shake his head, not believing what he had just heard, not believing he had been denied in such a way by the village he was giving away everything for.

The stress became too much, and the clone disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

Sasuke didn't even waited for the seals to be released, he barged through the door in search for the blonde, finally finding him at his apartment later that day, the door wide open, most of the furniture inside destroyed, and Naruto sitting in the middle of the mess, with red puffy dull eyes staring lifelessly at a random point in the floor, tear stains on his cheeks, and a small puddle of what he guessed were tears at his feet.

To think that, even if he bounced back from that, in a couple of weeks he would end so broken… so utterly crushed that he chose to practically commit suicide by looking for Madara by himself even after every one of the ones he still considered friends - surprisingly Sasuke was still considered one - tried to convince him to stay.

They had to offer him the possibility of a chance to change _everything _for him to stay… the offer to train him in sealing and let him butcher his father's signature seal in search for the key to what could be time travel.

They had to bribe him with power.

They had transformed his innocent, carefree and happy-go-lucky charge into a power hungry, bitter and vengeful shinobi, even if Naruto himself didn't noticed, convincing himself that he was doing it to help everyone and not only to make things go his way… until the day the seal was activated.

"You can keep the hat for yourself Tsunade, the kid don't need it. I'm sure he doesn't even remember what the position used to mean for him anymore."

Whatever Tsunade was about to retort died when a threatening "What do you mean?" made its way out instead, the rest of the people in the room showing various signs of discomfort, and concern in Shikamaru's case, already aware of what the fox was talking about.

"I meant exactly what I said… look, when I say this is _not_ Naruto Uzumaki anymore, I _really _mean it."

"What?"

"While the seal did its work with you by what I can see, for some reason it tossed us in Earthland - clearly something we weren't expecting - so when I looked out for Naruto to ask if he knew what happened imagine my surprise when I found a five year old blond boy, scared of everything around him - me included - with tears and snot running down his face, instead of the fearsome 17 year old shinobi that fought against Madara Uchiha alone to let his friends escape. The kid had no memories of any of us."

"No memories..." as those words left her mouse her overall appearance seemed to age, wide eyes looking at a random point in the room as the full weight of that revelation settled upon her mind and shoulders, before regaining focus and hardening her expression.

"How much you exactly mean with _no memories?"_

"No memories of anything" the fox answered truthfully "Of any of you, of the village, of his life here, of Akatsuki, of the war, of Madara, the Bijuu, the sage, me... Nothing, empty, everything after _his_ 5 years was gone from his head" then he seemed to consider something else "interesting fact, despite the age of his body with time I discovered that his chakra was… well, it wasn't frozen, more like the rate it circulated in his body had slowed to an extreme rate, as if to avoid harming him."

"And why would his chakra harm him?"

"Because his core had the same amount of reserves he had when the seal was activated, along with two or three tails worth of my own chakra still binding me to him." he answered with a shrug "Made teaching him to use Eternano a hell of an easier task, but there would be bursts here and there… boy were those bursts! Would knock the kid out for days! Natsu would drive us mad asking when would Naruto wake up from his _nap"_ Kurama said with a laugh, before sighing in sadness "Igneel did had a way with those two, even if the old lizard himself denied it."

Nobody else seemed to share Kurama's feelings during his little trip to the past.

"You!" Sakura finally reached her boiling point, tears streaming down her eyes "You did this to him! In a crazy attempt to escape from your seal when Naruto was weakened you put even more strain in the already unstable jutsu holding the seal together and then you-you-"

"I didn't" Kurama answered, more tired than annoyed by now "I was already out of it and like this" he said pointing towards his current physical appearance "when we arrived to Earthland." When he saw all the narrowed eyes locked into him, knowing they needed to blame someone but not wanting to be that someone, he decided to elaborate further.

"Look, I know it sounds farfetched, that it's really hard to understand, and that all this looks like it was too convenient to be an accident, but it's true. This is no longer the Naruto you all knew, the easier way for you to cope with this would be if you just… imagine he died the day you used the seal" Then he turned to the sleeping blonde and smiled sadly.

"But where there was once Naruto Uzumaki, now there's Naruto Dragneel. A proud mage of Fairy Tail, a guild in the kingdom of Fiore, from the world of Earthland. He now has a brother, that person who would cherish him more than anything he needed so desperately here as he grew up, one who took care of him once their foster father - you wouldn't believe me if I told you who it was - had to… _leave_. He has a family in that guild. Yeah, they are crazy, and most - if not all - are not exactly a role model, but they care for each other deeply and protect those they consider their friends with everything they have, even with their own life."

Then, surprising everyone in the room with the change from fondness to amused annoyance on his tone, the fox kept rambling "Then there's _Lucy… _even I don't know what those two _are_ anymore, one day they can act like the most sweet couple you have ever seen, and the next day they are just really good friends! Some people even think they are plotting with Kana just to make a living out of the bets she runs."

And nobody else knew what the fox was talking about anymore.

"I mean… Even Natsu is already in a stable relationship with Lissana!" Kurama continued, now sounding frustrated "and he's supposed to be the oblivious one."

Despite not knowing who else the fox was talking about, Sasuke clearly understood what Kurama was talking about and found himself muttering loud enough for the others to hear.

"Guess some things never change."

The sound of chuckling came from everyone, signaling their agreement while also helping disperse the remaining tension in the room, but Hinata excused herself out once the mirth died.

Nobody tried to stop her, and Kiba just gave her a worried look as she made her way out of the office.

"Overall, _this_ Naruto achieved what the other died without seeing. Love, recognition, a family, loyal friends... you name it and he's got it in amounts Uzumaki would only dream about."

"Now, you're being unfair with us fox" Tsunade said "you speak as if all Naruto received here was hate and contempt, and while I can't deny that indeed he was too good for this village, there _are _people who would go out of their way to put a smile on his face"

"I _know_" Kurama replied "as well as I know that he can't eat those smiles, or wear those good intentions as clothes. Just hoping things would've been better never solved the problem, and those who had the power to do something did _nothing!_ No, don't try to convince me staying here is the best option for him. Understand that Earthland is _our_ home now, and we _will_ return there as soon as possible."

The room went dead silent at Kurama's tone of finality. A... _mage_? A _guild_? Even after all the explanations it was still a hard idea to grasp, even harder to accept now that they knew this was _Naruto_, but... supposing for a moment that what the fox said was true, was his life in this "Earthland" _that _better than the one he had in the Elemental Nations? Safer? They already took care of some of the most immediate threats, even of some of the future ones.

Wasn't that enough?

"I… have an idea" Shikamaru muttered in Kurama's direction.

"What was that?"

"I said" he repeated, louder this time "That I have an idea- well, more like a compromise, one that could benefit both sides… to an extent."

Kurama furrowed his eyebrows, but nodded slowly.

"I'm listening."

"We can help you find a way back to this world you speak so high about. I'm sure Jiraya-sama can design a seal for that purpose with enough time and materials, _but-_" he rose a little his voice while rising a finger, seeing that the others were about to protest "in the meantime you'll be stuck here, and during that time we _will_ make Naruto recover his memory."

There was a massive sigh of relief in the room, wich annoyed both Kurama and Shikamaru for different reasons.

"No" Kurama said simply.

"Why, afraid of something?" Shikamaru taunted.

"Weary would fit better" Kurama said in a low growl, eyes narrowing once again "We can find help anywhere else, there's no reason for us to stay here if those are the conditions" with that said he turned and floated in the direction where Naruto was still unconscious.

"I can think of four different reasons we can use to force your stay here from the top of my head" Shikamaru said lazily, with a mocking undertone to his voice "all of them legal, and I'm sure I can find even more if I really put effort into it."

"Laws have never stopped us before."

"You're not in _'Earthland' _anymore, breaking those laws would make you missing-nin."

"He's not even a ninja anymore!"

"His papers say otherwise" Shikamaru answered, smirk on his face "He's just M.I.A., not declared dead yet… it can lead to a lot of speculation if _someone_ spotted a registered Konoha shinobi in any other village denying said affiliation, don't you think?"

"You wouldn't" Kurama's voice sounded dumbfounded, not believing they were being threatened in such way.

"True, we wouldn't" Shikamaru said with a shrug "unless _someone _forced our hand."

"You realize _who_ you're threatening, right?" the fox said with a threatening laugh "I almost leveled this village to rubble once while being under the control of someone else, if you're not careful about your next words you won't have that grace this time."

Shikamaru met his gaze unwavering.

"Do it."

Kurama physically recoiled at the answer, not expecting it.

"What?"

"You heard me, do it. I wonder what Naruto would think about it afterwards."

He got him. Kurama knew it, as well as he knew Shikamaru knew it too, and it made him feel so... _furious_, but at the same time also so… _sad._

"Why?" Kurama said in a whisper, barely containing a whimper "Why you hate us so? Wasn't it enough what you made him go through during the war? Is me trying to get along with you not prove enough that I'm not the same beast I used to be? Because if it's because of me then fine! Seal me in another kid and get your precious Jinchuuriki back, but let Naruto alone! He doesn't deserve this… _you_ don't deserve him."

Shikamaru, as well as everyone else, was left speechless after Kurama's outburst. He was counting in the fact that the fox had a change of heart, but this was too much, it was actually making him feel guilty, but how trust that this was not just an act? He turned towards Tsunade, looking for an answer there, but he only found the same level of shock he was currently feeling in her eyes.

"Look" he said, trying to make his voice sound reassuring "we don't need to reach those lengths. Just hear what I have to say and I'm sure you'll find it's something reasonable."

"Do I have any other option?" Kurama said dejectedly, making Shikamaru sigh.

"What I had in mind was to let Naruto decide where he wish to stay. You say his memories are forever lost, while we think that they are somewhere there just waiting to be recovered, so why not put our theories to test? Either you like it or not you'll need time to find a way back, and our side of the compromise would be to shorten that time by actively offering help, while your side of the compromise would be to let us do whatever we deem necessary to recover his memories while you stay in the village."

The room remained silent, every eye fixated on Kurama's form as he kept his eyes in Naruto's sleeping form.

"Only if Naruto agrees to let you do whatever you want to do on him" his voice finally came out, carrying relief to every shinobi in the room.

As much as he hated to admit it, Kurama knew that these were not the times of the Shinobi Alliance, and there was still animosity between the villages... knowing Naruto he would become a beacon of attention in a matter of days if not around someone else capable of controlling him, entertain him, or both.

"Make him feel threatened" he added, almost snarling "and I'll take him away, making sure _no one else_ _from this village ever threatens him again._ Believe me, I'll know."

"Then you _still_ share a link with Naruto, even outside the seal" a nod "That's how you managed to detect my illusion and block Naruto's memory of our encounter in the forest" Sasuke stated, not affected in the slightest by the glare directed at him.

"Yes."

"Then why don't give him _your_ memories?"

"Even after all I have already told you, you _still _insist with that? What part of _I don't want him to have anything to do with this place _you don't understand? Besides, his mind is not my playground Uchiha, I don't plan on pulling out a page of your… _caring_ brother's book anytime soon."

"Then why _now_?" Sasuke asked with narrowed eyes, slightly annoyed at Itachi's mention.

"I had never seen him like that" the fox answered with a confused frown "It actually scared me a little, so this time was an exception. You imagine having a rational conversation with him while he was _that_ mad?"

A knock on the door interrupted Sasuke, and Kakashi poked his head inside as he opened slightly the door.

"Ehhh.. .Hokage-sama? I think you should come out and see this."

Tsunade groaned and stood up, walking through the door and following Kakashi, just to enter once again seconds later with a hand on her forehead and an expression of frustration.

"Fox, you-"

"Kurama" he interrupted "Call me by my name please, it feels weird being called like that."

Tsunade rose an eyebrow in curiosity but shrugged.

"Fine, _Kurama_, I understand this may not be the best moment and that there's a lot we still need to discuss, but we need Naruto up _right now_, word got out that Naruto was back faster than I expected and now there are enough people waiting to see him that should they become more agitated... "

"You're Hokage, why are you afraid of them?"

"Iruka is leading them."

"Iruka…" Kurama muttered, trying to remember why the name sounded so familiar "The… academy teacher?" a nod "And that's important because…?"

"It's _Iruka_" Tsunade answered as if that explained everything.

Still confused at why it should matter so much Kurama sighed and turned to Naruto, feeling that any trace of agitation was gone and now he was just pleasantly sleeping… although he would wake up with a killer headache.

"I guess I could wake him up…" he mumbled "but I want everyone out right now. If I'm going to create a story about how we ended here then I don't need anyone bothering while I explain things to him."

"What will you do if he recognizes anyone from the crew?" Sakura asked.

"I guess… that would be out of my power" he said dejectedly "but I'm sure it won't happen. I may have agreed to your… _compromise_ but I still have my sights set on leaving this world, so don't expect _any_ kind of help from me."

Tsunade just gave a curt nod before ushering everyone outside, turning to Kurama one last time before exiting the room herself.

"Just know that we would never do anything to harm Naruto… at least _I_ would never do such a thing."

Kurama said nothing, but considered the words carefully as he nudged Naruto to wake him up, already with a story in mind.

"Ughhh…" Naruto moaned as he woke up, clutching his head feeling the sharp pain that threatened to split it in half "What hit me? Feels like the time Gildarts gave me a noogie."

"Heh" Kurama chuckled "and so we learned crash magic and physical affection _can't _mix… You knocked yourself out with a tree, while knocking off also the tree"

"Huh?" Naruto asked still rubbing his head.

"It was pretty funny actually" Kurama said with humor "long story short, after those guys agreed to help us you started running without waiting for the directions, tripped with a root on the ground and used magic to avoid falling, but instead of sending yourself back to your feet you propelled yourself straight into a tree… face first. I guess you can tell what happened then."

"I hit my head against the tree?" Naruto mumbled bashfully, an embarrassed blush dusting his cheeks.

"Hit?" Kurama snorted "you went straight through it! I had to carry your unconscious ass all the way here."

"Heh… sorry."

"Nah, don't sweat it. Not the first time, and I doubt it will be the last time."

"Hey!" Naruto objected loudly "You make it sound like it happens all the time!"

"It doesn't?"

"O-of course not!"

Kurama just rose an eyebrow and lifted a paw, signaling a finger on it.

"There was the time you blew up the guild's kitchen because you wished to turn on the stove for Mira-"

"I didn't knew it worked with gas!"

"Then the time you trashed Magnolia's market trying to punch this one guy you said was looking funny at Lucy-"

"I swear that guy was up to no good."

"And then that time on Krocus-"

"Fine! Fine, you were right, happy now?" Naruto grumbled in annoyance, earning a cheeky smile from Kurama "Where are we anyway?"

"Oh, true. Apparently we being from another dimension is a big deal here, so since you were just out cold and there was no need for a hospital we brought you straight to their leader's office inside their village."

"Village huh?" Naruto mused "Why not go straight to the city?"

"Uhhh… this is _their_ city, they just call it Village because… reasons? Go look for yourself, there's a window over there."

The next second Naruto had his face glued to the glass window behind the Hokage's desk.

"Wow, it looks big… and old… and there's a mountain with faces on it, hmmm… can't see any train tracks, or shores, or carriages, or any transportation really" then he turned with an excited smile "Kurama! This place is perfect!"

Kurama sweatdropped.

"I highly doubt you can reach that conclusion just by the fact that there are no vehicles to make you nauseous."

"Oh shut up, you only speak because you don't need to carry a paper bag every time you get inside a train."

"Of course! Where would be the fun if I had to?"

Naruto just started grumbling to himself.

"Anyway, welcome to the village hidden in the leafs" Seeing naruto about to ask something Kurama rose a paw "Don't ask, I also have no idea why _hidden_, whatever rolls their boat I guess" Naruto just shrugged and nodded.

"Where is everyone else?"

"Left a while ago, apparently word got out here that you were the other Naruto, and people got here to meet you. Right now they should be trying to explain you're not the Naruto they are looking for."

"Hmmm… makes me feel kinda bad to crush their hopes like that."

"Not your fault, so it shouldn't bother you much… but yeah, it does feel a little bad... Oh! I forgot to tell you" Kurama said turning serious, catching Naruto's full attention immediately "I overheard some of their conversation on our way here, and I think they still believe you're Uzumaki."

"But I already explained that!" Naruto whined.

"I know, but you can't really force them to believe you, can you? Besides… well…"

"What?" Naruto asked sensing his best friend's hesitance "They plan on doing something?"

"No, it's not that..."

"Then?"

"From what I heard Uzumaki could be... well, dead..."

"Dead? That's... no way!"

"Don't get all gloomy now. I said that he could be, not that he was" Seeing Naruto's little sigh of relief made Kurama's heart ache "They also said this was a ninja village, and that he was a ninja too, so I guess he should know to protect himself right?"

"Ninja?" Naruto's eyes lit up like a puppy's, immediately wrapping his scarf around his face like he once saw Natsu do, leaving just a space for his eyes "Then they can teach me super secret stealthy techniques! Nin-nin."

Kurama's eye twitched before he facepalmed.

"Focus on the problem Naruto!" Kurama growled "They want to replace Uzumaki with you! We will be staying here, so if they try something funny don't let them guilt trip you, I know you're a softie under all that tough guy act."

"I'm not a softie!" Naruto whined "Besides Natsu is still on Earthland, why would I stay here?"

"Just making sure you get the idea."

"It would be easier if we go somewhere else then, we just ask for a map and then we leave."

"Wasn't it your idea to come here?"

"Yeah, but it's no use if you get all grumpy… the idea was to meet the other me and have fun until we get back to Earthland but if you don't like it in here-"

"Now don't get me wrong, I'm not saying they _will_ try to make you stay but what I heard…" Kurama just shook his head "nevermind, just be careful ok?"

A nod and a beaming smile was his answer, making him grin affectionately.

"I think Elfman would like it here" Naruto mused after a comfortable space of silence.

"Why? Because there's not much noise here?"

"Yeah, but also because of that forest… Those trees are taller than the ones around Magnolia, he would have more space to play."

"You make it sound like he's a toddler."

"Well, he acts like a kid most of the time."

"When he's not snarling at everyone who's not Mira, Lissana, Natsu, Happy, you or me."

"Yeah… he used to be so nice to us…"

"Hey, everyone already told you to stop blaming yourself."

"I know, but I can't help but feel a bit guilty for all the time he had to spend in Edolas like a circus beast... "

"He will heal in time, and I'm sure that if he were… _sane _he would have been happy that you protected Lissana."

Naruto just hummed, still looking out through the window.

Sometimes, Kurama thought not for the first time, dealing with Naruto was like being with a Natsu clone, all bubbly, innocent and happy, but sometimes… there was still some of the old Naruto there, he could tell. It didn't made him happy, true, but he wasn't completely against the idea… as much as the old Naruto's life sucked, it were all those experiences what made him the first human he would ever tell his name to, and it was good that some of the nice things of their old life stayed.

A soft knock on the door brought him back to the Hokage's office, reminding him that there were people waiting outside.

"Hey" he said floating next to Naruto and nudging his side "I'll go outside to check how's the situation going. You fine if I leave you alone for a while?"

"Yup!"

"Ok… maybe they'll come in with the other people anyway, so…"

"Hey" Naruto said with a smile, returning the previous nudge with one of his own "I'm fine, you know being all gloom and doom doesn't fit me. Go, I'll be ok."

Kurama gave Naruto one last relieved and grateful smile as he floated towards the door, before opening it and being greeted by what he could only call a mob.

"Kurama-sa-"

"_Gah! _Goddamnit kid! Are you half ghost!? Scare the shit out of me, won't you?"

Hinata giggled softly at Kurama's indignation before pointing towards a very irritated Tsunade.

"Lady Tsunade has been trying to keep all the people from trampling the door over until you were done with Naruto" her soft voice carrying on from her giggle fit "I'm sure she would appreciate you helping her calm down everyone."

Kurama narrowed his eyes at her.

"Out with it kid, I'm old enough to know you want to say something, or ask for something."

Hinata looked to a side sheepishly, a soft embarrassed blush dusting her cheeks.

"I… I do want to say something, to both you and Naruto, but I'm not sure…" her voice faded away as she, once again, avoided the fox' eyes.

Kurama regarded her for some seconds, and opened his mouth to say something, but Tsunade got tired of waiting and grabbed him by one of his tails, janking him to the front of the agitated mob.

"Hey! Those are sensitive!"

"Don't care, now make these people calm down before _I_ make them calm down. Shizune! A bottle of Sake for yesterday!"

"B-but Tsunade-sama, you're on-"

"Don't care, I'm too sober to deal with this shit. Sake. Now."

Everyone sweatdropped.

Kurama's eyes flickered for a second in the direction of Hinata, but the girl was gone, so shrugging he floated above the gathered people and cleared his throat.

"Aheem… Everyone can see the floating fox? Yes? Good. Now, it has come to my notice that all of you think- yes, little girl?"

"I'm not a little girl! My name is Moegi!"

"Whatever" Kurama said with a roll of his eyes "what did you need Moegi? I'm in the middle of an explanation here."

Surprisingly - for the time travelers that is - the fox didn't sound annoyed in the slightest, patiently listening to Moegi like he had done the same thing a thousand times already.

"Well… are you a contract summon? Because you look cute and… I would like to have you as a summon too…" the girl was beet red by the end of her question, looking completely embarrassed


	2. Lost Between Fairy Leafs - backstory

"The first thing I remember" the blonde boy started "is waking up in a forest, without even knowing how I got there."

"Just waking up?"

"Yup!"

"That's it? Nothing else?"

"Ehhh… No? Why? You think something else should have happened?"

"N-no, it's not that, just… nothing, never mind."

"Ok… like I said, the first thing I remember is waking up in a forest, like… 11 years ago?" he said counting with his fingers and furrowing his eyebrows.

"You don't remember the first thing you remember? How that works?"

"I don't what? You're talking funny."

"I- You… -sigh- how old you were back then?"

"Five"

"How old are you now?"

"Sixteen?"

"Is that a question?" she asked with a growl

"S-sixteen!"

"Then it was eleven years ago"

"Y-you're being scary!" The blonde said while pointing at her with a shaky finger.

"Oh? You wish to see me being really scary?" She asked with narrowed eyes and a dangerous smirk, while cracking her knuckles.

"N-no!"

"No what?"

"No ma'am!"

"That's what I thought"

"You're being scary, just like Erza." The blonde said, more calmed now.

"I've heard that name before… is she some kind of girlfriend?"

The way his eyes widened like dinner plates and he frantically shook his head was enough answer for her.

"She's one of the strongest members of the guild, kind of an older sister for Natsu and me, but scary as hell when she's mad…"

"Natsu… you haven't told us much about him"

"You haven't asked" he said with a shrug; cool as if just moments ago he hadn't been terrified of her.

"Then, could you tell me about him?"

"Sure, just ask."

"Well, are you brothers by blood?"

"Uh? Like if we have the same mom and dad?"

"Yes, exactly like that"

"Well, Igneel is like our dad, and Kurama, besides being my best friend, is like a grumpy uncle, but no… Natsu found us actually, and dragged us with him to meet Igneel"

"Dragged who?"

"Me and Kurama, duh"

"Weren't you alone in the forest?"

"Uhhh… No?" He had to duck a punch directed to his face right after he answered "Hey! What's the big deal!"

"I'm trying to be patient here, but you're not helping!"

"Well, if you could just let me tell- Whoa!" and he had to avoid another punch "Fine! Fine! Sorry! Stop trying to murder me!" he said crawling backwards, backing away from the enraged woman.

"Then _please_ tell me what I want to know, or else…"

"F-fine –gulp- well, not too long after I woke up I met Kurama… now that I think about it, I can't remember why I was so scared of him back then. I mean, his eyes are a bit scary sometimes, but besides that he's like a cute stuffed animal… and is soft, just like one…"

"How you know he's soft like that?"

"I used to cuddle with him when I was little" he, once again, answered with a shrug.

"And he didn't say anything?"

"He said I was comfy"

The snort Tsunade gave hearing that went unnoticed by Naruto, along with the knowledge that she now had something to blackmail the fox with, so he just continued.

"Kurama took care of me for a couple of days, mostly hunting, finding caves to spend the nights on, keeping us warm on nights, that kind of stuff. I remember he said something about finding an old hag to get some answers, but we never got to look for anyone because at the fourth day Natsu fell upon us."

"Don't you mean he found you?"

"Nah, he was climbing a tree we were walking under, and the branch he was standing on broke, so he really fell upon us."

Tsunade sweatdropped at the way he met someone so important for him.

"And what was he doing on top of a tree?"

"Trying to fly"

Now she didn't know whether bursting up laughing, or facepalming.

"Trying to… fly?"

"Haha! That was Kurama's exact reaction!" He said pointing at her face.

"What was _your_ reaction, then?"

"I thought it was cool" He answered with a shrug, and now Tsunade did facepalm.

"Only you Naruto… Anyway, what happened after that?"

"Well, first Natsu got in an argument with Kurama, because he was upset that Kurama was acting just like his dad, and that it was unfair since they both had it easy with wings."

"So the fox had those little wings with him all the time?"

"Yeah… First I thought he was the only animal like that, but then we found Happy and he was just like him, just that he's a cat. Only after we got to Edolas we learned they are Exeeds."

"Exeeds?"

"Magical cats from another world that have wings, no big deal… funny thing, we got to meet Happy's family and Carla's mom too, but there was no one even similar to Kurama. It was kindda sad, you know? Even if he said he was fine, I wonder what happened with his family."

"So you've been to other worlds before too?"

"Uh-huh, but that time the whole city was sucked up, we only got to get there thanks to Mystogan… something about us being Dragon Slayers, meh."

"You are losing me here, care to go in order?"

"Oh, sorry. Where was I?"

"Kurama and Natsu fighting because he has wings"

"Yeah, so in the end we grouped against Kurama, because I thought being able to fly was cool, and because Kurama wouldn't believe that Igneel was a dragon."

"You believed him?"

"Why would he be lying about a dragon?" He asked as if the most obvious thing in the world.

Tsunade gave him a deadpan look, but he looked as oblivious as always, so she just resigned to not be surprised by the boy anymore with a long sigh.

"Of course you would believe that… So what you did?"

"Nothing, Natsu said he would show us and took us to meet Igneel. He was so huge… and scary too. I don't know why but first he was mean with us."

"Mean how?"

"First he started shouting to Natsu about bringing us with him, and then he starting shouting at us to leave, but Kurama said that we needed somewhere to stay for the night, and Natsu pleaded him so much that in the end we stayed."

"You two won an argument… against a Dragon?"

"Nah, I'm sure that without Natsu, Igneel would have kicked out us that moment."

"And yet here you are now, eleven years later calling him dad. What happened?"

"I… don't really know. That night I was more busy talking with Natsu, because I've never heard before about someone living with a dragon, and then we fell asleep. Tthe next morning Kurama told me that him and Igneel had talked about some things, and that now we could stay for some more time."

"Just like that?"

"I… guess? Kurama never told me what he did to convince Igneel, and I don't care much anyway. We spent around three weeks with them before _that day_."

"_That day_. How ominous." She said with obvious sarcasm.

"Hey! I'm trying to make the tale interesting! Geez, you sound like Levi."

"Fine, fine. Just tell me what happened."

"Well, I became really good friends with Natsu and Igneel wouldn't stop bothering Kurama about him showing his true self, but after the second week he started to warm up to us."

"What? Wasn't he already in good terms with you two?"

"Nope! He was really mean those first days. Wouldn't share his fire, even with him being a dragon, and wouldn't share the food. I remember one day he scolded Natsu because he gave me some of their meat in secret, and in the end he told him that he was being mean while sticking his tongue out, along with a raspberry."

"I can see how you two could get along so well"

"Huh? Said something?"

"Uh? N-no, just thinking out loud. Then how you started to get along?"

"Well, one day I asked Kurama what I did to make Igneel mad, and he told me that it was nothing, and that just by being myself with him things would get better, eventually."

"I get that worked."

"Yeah, I remember it started this day Natsu came angry to me telling about not knowing who were his mommy and daddy, and that Igneel wouldn't tell him, so I told him that I also didn't knew who they were but that I had Kurama, and him, and Igneel too, even if he was mean with us, so I was happy for now. That was the first time someone hugged me… Natsu was crying, and he told me that from that day on he had adopted me as his brother, so I better stayed there with him and Igneel or he would make me."

During the time he told him to Tsunade, Naruto never stopped smiling, and just took a moment after that last sentence to take a deep breath and clean a couple of tears that came up with the memory.

"That night Igneel let us seat with them around their fire, and he even talked with us… well, with Kurama, because I was playing with Natsu the whole time. It continued like that for one more week, but one day he went out telling he had to meet with someone important and had to go alone, then, when he returned, he told Kurama that we had to leave because Natsu shouldn't be around others, but Kurama said that I needed to stay because he alone couldn't keep me safe the whole time. Then kept arguing for some more time, until Kurama said that he didn't mattered, that the one that needed to stay was me because I was safer with them than with him, and that he would do anything just so I could stay there."

"He said that? _Anything_?" For Tsunade that was a first. The fox doing so much for Naruto?

"Yeah… in the end they agreed that they would fight, all out, and that if Kurama won I would stay, but that if Igneel won then we both would have to leave."

Tsunade shivered at the idea of some_thing_ challenging a Bijuu to an all out fight. That was either being too confident, or too stupid, no matter the size.

"Then I get he won, since you stayed with them."

"Ehhh, not really. They fought really hard, or at least it looked like it. There's when Kurama became almost as big as Igneel, but Igneel was so strong, with fire everywhere… Kurama was launching this weird balls that made big explosions, but Igneel avoided many of them, and his claws alone weren't enough."

The Hokage was gaping at this point, her mind totally blank, not managing to process the idea of something defeating the fucking _Kyuubi_! Even after receiving the impact of more than one _Bijuudama_!

Naruto continued, unaware of the possible trauma he had just caused Tsunade.


	3. Lost between Fairy leafs - reboot

The only reason he managed to get his ass out of bed - or tent, depending on the situation - was because of the clan… like, a clan compound filled with people that made him feel like he belonged, and no longer the memory he carried of it as it's lone survivor. Most of the time it was only… _hard_ to gather the courage he needed to face the world on a daily basis at dawn… seeing his mother and sister was both relieving _and_ painful at the same time, only managing to give an awkward smile and a meek "Hi" before bolting out of the house for fear of breaking down at that moment, always with the same excuse.

"_Hokage-sama is waiting for me, I'll try to be early today ok?"_

Then he would meet with the others and have the closest thing they would have to a peaceful breakfast, or at least as peaceful as they could manage. Each one brought back their own ghosts, and even if sharing them with the rest made it a little easier to go to bed at night, everyone knew that the nightmares would never leave.

The fact was that, after that their lives were just a routine they got used to with time. Wearing polite masks in public, protective of their friends and weary of those untrusty to them… always keeping an eye open if they could spot… _something… anything!_ But today was just harder… three years since that day, years that they spent trying to change as much as possible to stop what they knew would eventually come should they do nothing, and yet years that felt like a waste of time because _he _was not here with them!

Today he had left alone - Tsunade already knew, he was sure - towards the border with what once was the land of sound, risking the trip down the memory lane as he traveled down the path he and his little group had worn down on the forest.

Every time he made this little trip he reminded himself that it was better not to rise his hopes, and every time he failed to follow his own advice, finding clues and signs hinting that someone else had traveled that very same path… just to find that everything was on his mind the whole time, and return home feeling a little more hollow than before, and deal with his guilt until the next time.

The sad thing? He would do the same again and again, because he knew he _deserved it._

Apparently today it was the faint trail of that scent he knew like the palm of his hand, so like a faithful dog he followed it, hoping against his better judgement that today it would lead somewhere real.

Unsurprisingly it didn't, once again taking him towards a mirage… a ghost of the past that waved its arms and tried to get his attention, but he knew better than that by now, having lost himself in his grief in front of them enough times, so he just ignored it and kept walking.

Besides it was all wrong! Where was all the orange!?

When it looked like the imaginary person had lost its patience, as fast as the original he noted with a sad smile, it charged with the intention of pummeling him.

With a sigh, he kept walking.

Before everything went black, Kiba Inuzuka made an interesting discovery, followed by a mental note.

"_Ghosts of the past pack one hell of a punch."_

If his life was a joke this would have been the punchline, because seriously, he had _not_ just gone through all that crap in Edolas just to get dumped in another strange place where people apparently likes to ignore you like you don't even exist!

_(His inner Lucy was yelling at him that it was just one person, and that he looked also quite out of it.)_

Having calmed a bit after hearing what everyone else called his voice of reason - Funny because it sounded just like Lucy, and Natsu says that he also hears Lissana-neesan in his head - he took the time to sit down and think about, well , all the crap he went through in Edolas, because he lost the thread somewhere between fighting the enslaved Beast-Elfman that the king took from Earthland - Lissana-neesan was so happy he was alive, and Mira would also be really happy when she sees him - and fighting that big ass robot-dragon-thingie the king pulled at the last minute, and then Natsu's plan to make Mystogan-not-Mystogan-but-Edolas-Jellal king…

Uhhh...

What was he talking about?

"Naruto! There's no way this is-"

Ah, Kurama. He would make sense of everything. He always did.

"- why is there an unconscious body next to you?"

Or he would notice the asshole who ignored him earlier.

"Ehhhh… another guy from another dimension?"

Kurama was just giving him that very same deadpan expression the old man used every time a notification came from the capital naming him or Natsu.

How he pulled that look with that tiny face was a mystery.


	4. Lost between fairy leafs - next 2

Chapter 10: Nakama

It took him some time to even dare open his eyes, his head and brain currently being a total mess thanks to the masive headache that was threatening to split them in two if he just tried to remember what happened, or what hit him.

For the moment all his mind could recollect was him feeling desperate for a moment, jumping to do something really stupid because of that, ant _then _feeling like being punched really hard in the face and/or head by a royally pissed Gildartz, but at the same time also feeling the familiar warmth and comfort of of flames licking at his face, so without thinking and out of pure reflex he ate them.

He guessed that if not for that little boost he would be unconcious by now, because even if the headache he was feeling at the moment was a dulled version of the one he originally would have, knowing how much even a bit of fire in his stomach helped him dealing with pain, then the full experience would have been too much for him to endure.

He was no stranger to pain, but if what he was feeling at the moment was hurting like a bitch... a shudder ran down his spine thinking about what it could have been.

Taking some deep breaths he tried to regain his bearings, knowing that if he was in pain then he was attacked, and bitching about his pain only made him a sitting duck, so fighting the urge of throwing up after he tried to stand up in a jump, only achieving to make his world spin violently for a painful couple of seconds, the desision of lying flat on the ground for some more time was mabe for him by his body, which refused to react after that last stunt, so hoping he would be left alone enough time to recover, he did his best try at relaxing, letting out a resigned and pained grunt.

His headache not giving quarter didn't made things easier for him.

Muffled sounds were surrounding him, in his current dazed state not being able to understand what they were, and like he didn't felt like doing anything to stand up, given the outcome of his previous attempt, all he did was remain in his spot on the ground, trying his best to ignore the splitting headache.

Then, like a godsent gift, he felt something grab his head just before someone yelled - right next to his ear - what sounded like some sort of order, and a cool, soothing and relaxing feeling enveloped his aching head, finally making the pain go away and letting his thoughts come into focus once again, letting the fastest recolection of his life flash in his eyes as one thought jumped to the front of his mind, along with him to his feet.

"Lucy!"

"Lay down you baka!" an irritated-sounding Sakura yelled at him, his senses working well enough for him to hear her clearly "I have no idea how, but you managed to survive one of Deidara's bombs exploding point blank in your face with aparently just some scratches and what seems to be a headache."

"And is that suposed to be a good thing?" Naruto groaned, obiously not totally healed since his world spinned


	5. Take over - drabbles

Plot for new chapter (finally!)

Sora and Naruto will be chillin after classes with Peter and Ned - no Ned reveal duh! - so they won't be invited to flash's party, or won't go in Sora and Co. case, while Sora keeps Ned off from Peter so he can continue running like a puppy around Naruto and vice versa - they are cute kids - asking about everything they can about the other.

They bid farewell to Ned and go to Peter's house to leave him there and say hi to May, but she makes them stay for dinner because she's May and Sora goes out to get something to drink - soda most likely - and on his way to the store he finds Vanitas, he's happy to see him (whaaaaaa?), and asks him how his travels have gone (and about the green contact lenses because golden eyes are creepy), Vanitas follow Sora into and just talks, still being his snarky self but also being civil until they are returning to Peter's and Vanitas drops the bomb that Sora's friends are close to finding a way to travel to the elemental nations, and Sora just stands there gaping like a fish while Vanitas opens the door to the house, where - surprise surprise! - Tony Stark is waiting.

Naruto is all like "Hey Sora, look, Iron Man!" All the while trying to look excited but it looking more worried, and Sora is still brain dead because of what Vanitas just told him, and talking about Vanitas, Naruto goes all like "Vanitas-nii!" And rockets towards him before hug-tackling the raven earning an affectionate ruffle of hair - not that Vanitas will admit it - along with a smirk, Sora is still trying to react while he drowns in flashbacks from Konoha and what that would mean to his friends if they ever go there - _iron stark! I mean Mr. Man! I mean Mr. Stark! - _and uses Vanitas as an excuse to leave, but tony forces himself upon them. Because Vanitas and they leave. Vanitas goes ahead with Naruto and Sora stays with Tony to explain the how they ended there, since Tony already knew the why

_Flashback 5 months 28 days before_

Naruto is all excited puppy mode running around Konoha with a newly arrived and amused Sora, when Kakashi appear in front of them and tells that Tsunade is calling for both, so they follow him - he's being all serious and kind of cold - but Naruto never notices and Sora thinks he's like that, when they arrive Tsunade is waiting for them along with Shikaku, Inoichi, Ibiki and Danzo, and as soon as the door closes Danzo gives an order and guards subdue - swords to the neck - Sora, and Naruto is like "Wtf?" But Tsunade ignores it and starts talking about how Sora could be an spy from other countries that want to take Naruto away and Danzo is all like "yeah, let' kill him and get his secrets for the village" but Shikaku is like "let Inoichi search his mind" but Kakashi is mad because he heard Sora and Naruto talk about leaving and Sora is scared shitless because he can feel the edge if the sword on his neck and Naruto is overwhelmed because he doesn't know what's happening anymore and doesn't know what side to take


	6. Take over - random drabbles

"Is it still as you remember?"

Sora nodded in silence, the emotion choking the words on his throat and threatening to make them sound like pitiful whimpers.

"Then what are you waiting for? Go enjoy yourself, I'll be back in a while."

With that Segaku vanished but Sora didn't even noticed as he jumped from the row boat and threw himself on the beach.

The sound of seagulls felt like music to his ears, along with the waves crashing on the shore. The sand felt like the softest silk underneath him, and the warmth of the sun like a comforting blanket…

The first thing Sora did when Segaku returned to pick him up was run towards him… and send both to the ground with a bone-crushing hug-tackle to the older man.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!"

"Wow, someone's on high spirits, I see. I get you liked my little surprise then?"

"I- I…" In other circumstances Sora would have tried to hide the way his voice cracked, or keep the tears at bay, but after all Segaku had already done for him he was far beyond that point.

"Thank you" he whispered, his face buried on the older's shirt, meaning every word and welcoming the hand that ruffled his brown locks.

"It was the least I could do for you little hero. I know how much you missed the play island, so bringing you back seemed like the best option, besides you gotta make some new friends and play like you used to, right?"

Sora nodded with the goofiest grin Segaku had ever seen plastered on his face.

"I didn't get to see any of the guys we used to hang out with" The boy started "but there were a lot of new kids and… well, it was kinda awkward at first, but then it was awesome! We played everything from tag to races around the island! I even got to unlock the other side of the island for them!"

The inside of the Restoration Committee HQ (formerly known as Merlin's House) was buzzing with activity, with so many people inside it that the old wizard was forced to use a spell to magically enlarge the inside of said place, not really minding given the circumstances that led to the odd gathering.

"Have you already noticed Simba?"

"Not yet! Remember we can only reach that world by traveling!"

"Roxas and I can get there quickly with our gliders!"

"Then go now! The wider we spread, the easier it will be to find Sora!"

"Leon! Incoming message from Riku!"

"Put it on the speakers Xion."

"_No news from Sora in Tarzan's world or Traverse Town, I'm heading to Atlantica now."_

"Don't, Aqua is already there, we should be hearing from her soon."

"_Then Olympus Coliseum-"_

"Donald and Goofy already reported from there too, no news either, but they will be searching on their own too, maybe even get Hermes or even Zeus to help."

"_Good, then I'll be heading back now. Riku out."_

"Leon!"

"Terra! Thank goodness, any news from Cinderella's world?"

"None, nor from Agrabah

If Sora was to be honest, he had no idea what was going on anymore because, true, he was an active part of the happenings that unfolded on his current position - sitting on some sort of couch at the control room of a stolen Gummy ship, unable to pry himself from underneath the sleeping blonde boy that was using him as a body-sized pillow, because that very same boy had cried himself to sleep and he didn't had the heart to leave someone hurting alone - but all he was supposed to do was pick Naruto up after _borrowing_ the gummy ship from the restoration committee, not fight back four or five more kids and a couple of grown ups throwing sharp knives and stars in his direction along with some of the most… _interesting_ attacks he had ever seen.

Really? Another giant multi-headed dog? And he thought that he was done with cerberus…

Anyway.


	7. NaroWow - worlds collide

"Thisss time the wardsss will not cloak them anymore" a voice said with a tint of insane glee to it "Their existence shall be revealed, and their worlds will collide" and with a wave of a taloned and scaly paw a shimmering barrier was lifted, invisible to the normal eye, but clear as day for him.

"Thisss will not help them" a voice came from behind, way too similar to his own for his comfort, but to an outsider it would sound more calm, and also _sane_.

"Too late already, _puppet_" he spat "Thisss timeline is no longer yoursss to _protect."_

The _unwanted _companion said nothing, but shook his head in sadness, the brown hair of his ponytail moving with the motion, and disappeared in golden sand.

For a second he felt sadness, and almost turned back, to at least see one more time who he _was _before… _them, _but his eyes caught a glimpse of the sky and all regret vanished as insane laughter filled the sky of the great sea.

The moon shone red, with a strange pattern of black symbols on it, and there was nothing filtering it's spell from the rest of the world this time.

_(Three months later)_

"My king! There's-"

The guard's words died on his lips as the man sitting on the throne in front of him raised his hand in a gesture to silence him.

"I am well aware of… _who_ are in the gates of Stormwind" he said calmly, but with a slight undertone of contempt "They are here by request of Lady Jaina Proudmoore, who should be with them if I'm not wrong?"

"Actually, my lord, she's the only reason out archers haven't rained arrows upon them."

The king just grunted before rising from the throne and signalling the soldier to follow him.

"How many of them Lady Jaina managed to gather?"

The guard fidgeted a bit under the armor, making an odd noise with it that made the king rise an eyebrow.

"W-well My lord, every known leader of the Horde is there…"

That made king Varian stop on his tracks, showing slight surprise at that statement.

"Even… she?"

"Yes, the Banshee Queen is also there."

With a silent curse Varian once again started walking, at a faster pace this time, realizing it was already too late to regret this.

Even if to the outside world he looked calm, Naruto Uzumaki was excited.

Months had passed ever since the war ended, he had been hailed as a hero once everything was done with, and Sasuke had been forgiven (he maaay have had something to do with that) because of the assistance provided on the most critical point of the war.

His _revolution _was a lapsus everyone - who was aware of it - could overlook, he was sure.

But the temme had to be a martyr and 'pay his debts away from them until he was worthy of being their comrade once again' (insert childish-like imitation of Sasuke's voice by Naruto here)

Then all was negotiations between the kages to finish the terms of the first ever stop-to-all-hostilities treat between the five great villages and any minor village out there, and the coronation of Kakashi-sensei as Hokage.

He still kept in contact with the many new friends from other villages he made during the war, and the peace and recognition he aimed to get was finally his, becoming Hokage now was just a matter of when, rather than if, and he was happy.

But man, peace is boring.

Now, don't mistake things here, he loves the peace achieved (he fought a war for it, duh!) And even if there's no longer a threat from the other nations, not everyone in the elemental nations was happy with the idea of an almost demilitarization, because there was people who, even if against being trapped in an eternal genjutsu, weren't exactly happy with the sudden decrease of high-risk and assassination missions.

The threat of a new Madara was still present, even if waaaaay lower now.

But after all the buzz and excitement of all the battling the war required, the lull that was now blanketing the elemental nations felt like a lullaby for the life rhythm he had grown accustomed to.

Nobody would ever know, but when the message that Kakashi-sensei was summoning him to his office for a top-priority mission ASAP, and after he was sure the messenger was gone, he gave a loud whoop of excitement before practically teleporting to the Hokage tower.

Kurama just rolled his eyes in amusement.

With a brisk pace and heavy steps the man made his way towards the meeting room, guards at each side of the hallway bowing in respect to him, their heavy armor clattering with each movement, making, at least for him, a very loud and annoying sound.

'They are not warriors' a part of him whispered 'Otherwise they would know all that armor will just get them killed'

'They are just doing their duty the only way they know' another part rebutted 'Not everyone here are gladiators'

The man just grunted in annoyance, his face morphing into a scowl, irritation flaring at the headache that was starting to take form, added to the already big mountain of worries plaguing his head.

At least Anduin was safe in Theramore, and he trusted Jaina that no harm would come from the other races sharing land with her.

For a moment he stood before the doors of the meeting room, already hearing the voice of his…_ guests_ arguing, slightly amused that for the first time in many years it was not against each other, or, well, at least not openly against each other, but rather against the unknown party that had casted such a powerful spell over all of Azeroth, one that not even the most powerful mages of the Kirin Tor managed to dispel before it also got hold of them.

The scary thing was that its conduct was the moon, and once it was casted nobody could tell they were on its hold until the spell was over.

There was no attack to either the Alliance or the Horde while the spell was active, so it left the question to everyone.

What was the purpose of the spell, besides the illusion it gave them?

"Ladies, gentlemen, excuse me for the tardiness but there were matters that needed my immediate attention." he said as he opened the double doors, his own heavy set of armor finally making noise, just because he wished it to, and gathering the attention of all the… people inside the room.

Blue skin and tusks, with red hair and strange tattoos over his body. Vol'jin, son of Sen'jin, shadow hunter and leader of the darkspear tribe, allies to the horde.

High as a mountain, and strong as one, brown fur covering his whole body, muzzle and horns, and wisdom in his eyes that he felt compelled to respect, even as a foe. Cairne Bloodhoof, leader of the bloodhoof clan and Chieftain of the tauren in Thunderbluff, allies to the horde.

Blue skin, bordering on black, with glowing red eyes that seem to be seething at everything they lay their visage on, dressed in dark ranger-like clothes, with a bow on her back and a sword on her side. The banshee queen and leader of the forsaken, Silvanas Windrunner, ally to the horde.

The mere presence of Silvanas here was already enough confirmation of Jaina's warning, about how this new threat would force all of them to work together, as much as he hated it.

Green - almost emerald - skin, with a constitution even a dwarf would envy and any foe would find intimidating, covered in black armor and carrying a black stone warhammer - _the very same hammer that- no… now is not the time - _and eyes that reflected much more intelligence than any other member of its race. Thrall, leader of the orcs and Warchief of the Horde.

Gulping down the bitter taste in his mouth, he took his place on the table.

"Shall we start?"

"Hey Kakashi-sensei, what was- Oh, hey Sakura-chan, hi Sai."

"Hmm? Hello dick-"

"Hello Naruto, I knew you were also going to be called for this mission. How's the prosthetic arm going?"

"Great Sakura-chan! Remind me to thank Baa-chan again later. Where is she now?"

"Lady Tsunade is currently somewhere in Tanzaku, betting away the money she got from her services to the village."

Sakura shot Sai a half-hearted glare.

Naruto just laughed.

"I found that Ero-Senin actually had a home here in Konoha, or rather on the forest… and it was rather a warehouse… but it had this mountain of Sake boxes inside, I should send a couple of those to baa-chan later, besides there were also the almost complete notes for the next Icha Icha novel. Hmmm… I have edited one of those perverted books before, maybe I should finish this one too, Ero-senin would have liked that."

Some coughs were heard in the office, and a small blush creeped over Sai's cheeks, along with the glaringly obvious fake smile.

It was creepy.

Someone cleared his throat.

"Oh, Kakashi-sensei, you were there the whole time?"

Whatever Sai was about to say was cut by Sakura's loud facepalm along with a mumble of _idiot._

Kakashi sweatdropped.

"Hey! He's been late our whole life, it's still weird to see him on time, even If that's because he's inside the office the whole day"

Sakura nodded reluctantly.

Sai kept smiling like a creep.

Kakashi got depressed.

"What I called you for" he said recovering from his flunk "is for a very important mission"

Instantly, the other three were in attention.

"A new continent, you say?" High priestess Tyrande Whisperwind asked with furrowed eyebrows "That is… most unlikely, I'm afraid."

"And yet it's the most likely explanation" the orc leader said with conviction "One of the most wise shaman under my command has sensed the awakening of something… different in the elements, something I can also feel, far within the unexplored parts of the great sea."

"Da Loa speak of hidden energies" Vol'Jin voiced his thoughts "They not be clear, it be too long sleepin', but they feel it waking up… and they fear it."

Tyrande politely ignored the words of the Troll, not one to hold on old grudges but still uncomfortable with him, and nodded her head to Thrall's words.

Elune had given her a vision, one that she was unable to understand. Just now hearing the input of others, from different points of view, she could start to make sense of it.


	8. Naruidea - kid in two worlds

Many people say that the power a human's brain hold is nothing to sneeze at, that just a tiny extra fraction of its whole potential being used would be enough to make even imagination something real, and many more would say that while not entirely a lie that claim would fall a little into exaggeration grounds because, really, that would imply that one's brain was enough to _create whatever the hell you want, so why nobody else have tried it already?_

To you, dear people, I say please shut up, because you know _nothing!_

I don't know if I'm gifted with more intelligence than the norm - I've always considered myself standard - or if I somehow got some sort of superpower by accident, like the soooo famous radioactive spider, but if something is clear to me? That is that, even if not by the exact definition the theory would imply, I wholeheartedly agree with it.

If your brain feels like screwing with you, it can take you into your imagination and make it _real_, placing you in a situation that no 14 year old teenager should find himself into, and believe me when I say, and please don't pity me, that being an orphan helps a lot in dealing with this, because while the matron _do_ watch over us, the amount of kids she has to look after makes that the attention she gives to each of us won't ever be able to hold a candle to the watchful eyes of parents, and for that I'm grateful.

There's enough on my plate atm to add the drama of hiding stuff from a couple of worried, caring and loving parents.

I hate myself so much for that line.

Sorry, sorry, I'm getting a little ahead of myself here. First of everything, my name is… well, it depends, really, in what time of the day it is, because of that… _unusual_ situation I find myself in that I was ranting about a little while back? Anyway, during the day I'm Rodrigo, no last names, a normal teenager who goes to school, likes music, videogames, comics and lately mangas/animes too because of survival instincts. The interesting thing is that during the night my brain decides to screw with me and while sleeping sends me to the body of Menma Uzumaki, brother of one Naruto Uzumaki, citizen - and future ninja, because the old man with the space Invaders hat said so - of Konohagakure no sato.

Do you understand now my sudden interest in the Japanese equivalent of comics now?

Proof that those are not just continued, really vivid lucid dreams? First, as I have already implied my interest in animes and manga is newfound, mostly because I finally paid attention to internet publicity and saw a facebook game featuring The name of my supposedly dream brother, and after a little of research I found out that _oh my gosh I'm the brother of the main character of an already finished manga!_

So yup! I had no idea of who was Naruto in the not dreaming world - it would be mean to imply that world is fake by calling this one the real world - before that day.

Second, there's a crossover of knowledge and/or habilities, skills, training, whatever between the two worlds, first and foremost my migrated knowledge of Japanese, because while not overnight I doubt five days would be enough for an average person like me to master the language at the level I can boast about now.

On a side note, it has become a pain to train myself not to speak in Japanese when my head is somewhere else while in this world, and vice versa. And yes, for the sake of narrative and my own lazyness everything here will be written in perfectly understandable English. You're welcome.

Interestingly enough it also happens with physical training - because really, running after the bouncing ball of energy that is Naruto, and managing to keep up with him, is a feat on itself - and while not at the same rate as with the language, I can see the improvement, and the PE teacher too apparently, because my pre-dream abysmal notes in the subject have suddenly improved, not by much, true, but still, and I even got a note from the teacher in the last report congratulating me for my great job.

I still have no idea about Chakra, because to unlock it you supposedly need quiet and calm to reach your core and all that stuff, and with Naruto you _never_ have quiet and calm, besides that doing that _here_ seems… dunno, _wrong_?

Whatever.

So yeah, I'm a 14 year old teenager who somehow juggles two lifes without having one collide with the other via myself… most of the time, and considering this has been going on for a couple of months now I would say I'm doing a pretty good job.

Sometimes I like it better there, sometimes I like it better here, but if there's something I've learned to miss here from the other side, that has to be my little brother, because as irritating, obnoxious, and annoying he can manage to be, he's just this little, scared and love deprived kid that would do anything for those he hold dear. My newfound anime knowledge has given me insight into the reason of his mistreatment, causing me to like Konoha even less, but Naruto loves the village for some strange reason, so I guess I'll have to bear with it. For now.

Now, don't even dare to think that we were best buddies from day one, oh damn no, Naruto was the worst roommate you can imagine to get for a whole week, and I kinda see where he came from because, well, imagine yourself being called one day to be told that, surprise surprise! You have an older brother - yeah, he's 13 atm - and you have to live with him and share what little you manage to get for yourself with him! Now, add to that all the bullshit the entire village throws at him on a daily basis - except a couple of people and most of ninjas, but those mostly just ignore him so no much difference actually - and you get one very distrustful, guarded and socially challenged kid.

It doesn't mean I have completely forgiven him, but I mean, I'm his brother so I have to be mean with him from time to time, right? It's in the job description, so I dare you say otherwise.

Anyway, that first week was a nightmare because I had no money, knew no one and all I had was a roof over my head, literally, because Naruto would not give me even the time, and would sneer at me every time I even came near his stuff, so yeah… besides that it was rare the day I managed to see him during the day because, usually, he would wake up before me to go God knows where and Bobby trap even the bathroom door - that one I learned in a very humiliating experience I will never let go because, really, it _was_ _that humiliating - _only leaving free the entrance door, leaving the message clear.

_Get the fuck out of my life, I don't need you._

But the old man would just tell me that I _had_ to remain there and give me some money for food, and on occasions let me use his bathroom, before sending me back "home". Naruto would just grunt or scowl when I returned and be back to ignore my existence until the next day, then repeat the sequence.

By the end of the week I was _tired_, and so made it clear to the old man, him just telling me that I had to give him time, yeah, sure, because I was _so comfortable_ dealing with the whole confusion every time I woke up on a different body, surrounded by different cultures, with the responsibilities of a school student and the need to give time to my hobbies, but being forced to never catch a breath because as soon as I got tired and tried to take a nap, _bam! _It was back to the other side, sometimes in the middle of the night, unable to sleep until a whole day was done and once I was back I had overslept, or slept through the whole afternoon-night and I haven't finished my homework, or skipped a meeting with my friends at the mall, or stuff like that. It was stressing, and Naruto's attitude didn't helped, so I made my discomfort clear and, seeing that nothing could be done with my current situation, I made the old man give me the one thing that would maybe make all this a little more bearable.

That day I got a guitar.

It wasn't that hard to convince the old man because, well, maybe he was expecting me to snap and demand him to give me my own place, or something like that, but I knew better at this point - besides that I knew nobody besides Naruto and the old man - so yeah…

First thing I did? Run back to the apartment and sit on my futon - the only spot I trusted wouldn't spring volleys of pebbles or buckets of painting - and started strumming noticing with no little amount of satisfaction that my fingers danced through the cords as easily as in my other body, and so I lost the sense of time playing every song I knew, and trying to play new ones, until a loud slam announced Naruto's arrival.

"I'm so done with everything! Why they- You! What the hell are you doing here!"

"Oh, hello dear brother, so nice from you to finally notice my existence."

"Why are you still here? Don't you get the hint? I want you OUT!"

"Believe me, I would if I could, but the old man has decided that I can't so, well, I can't."

"I don't care! I don't want you in my house!"

"Do you think I like it in here? Do you think I even tolerate you? My life has been a bloody hell ever since I so suddenly discovered I had a brother, and believe me, I would rather be _anywhere _else than with a little whiny and bratty kid who wouldn't even _try_ to talk things out with his _brother_ instead of just clamming up like an oyster and making other people's life miserable, makes me wonder if you even have any friends, but somehow I feel that I don't want to disobey the old man so, here we are."

Once I learned about his… _little fuzzy problem_ I wouldn't stop apologizing to him for two whole days, but at that moment I was just furious with him, so I just ignored the way his eyes widened and the hurt expression his face took… even the soft whimper that escaped his throat did nothing to get my attention, so I just let him run out to the street, being me who had to close the door after him, and I returned to my previous activity, feeling my stomach grumble in hunger and knowing that I wouldn't eat because I had no money left and the kitchen would probably rebel against me with Naruto's traps.

That only angered me further and helped squash what little guilt I felt for the kid.

It was much later that night, after I fell asleep that Naruto returned. I didn't mind him, still upset, and I almost fell asleep again, but then I heard sobs from Naruto's room, slowly growing in intensity, all the while he angrily asked the air why everyone hated him.

I tried, really tried, to remain angry and ignore him but, just like with the younger kids back at the orphanage I couldn't stand hearing him cry, so with a sigh I picked up my guitar and walked to his room not bothering to knock, already being experienced on how to deal with difficult kids, ignoring his startled gasp and his shout of me getting the hell out of his room, placing my guitar next to his bed and sitting on the edge, not looking at him yet, and wondering if he really wished me to leave because beside that shout there was no other attempt of making me leave him alone.

"Look, I'm sorry at the way I snapped at you earlier ok? I was just really angry at everything you have been doing and… well, I guess you have your reasons for being that way…"

Still silence.

I kept bugging him like that for about 20 minutes, I think, him always remaining silent in the end, but I knew sooner or later he would give in, either from annoyment or curiosity.

"Why are you doing this? It's me who have been an ass with you… why are you apologizing?"

"I can see where this is going, and either we work this out or we rip out each other's throats, and I would prefer the first outcome, thank you very much. But for that to happen one of us must relent, and seeing that I'm the outsider here, well, it falls on me to take the first step, right?"

"I- uhhh…"

"Look, as… misserable as these days have been you're still family… the only family I have here actually, and by what I could see you're in the same situation. It's stupid to hold grudges against people you sare something with, specially us since we share blood… Naruto, we shared our mother's _womb!_ \- Of course, if what the old man said was true, but I digress - My point here is that I'm as surprised by all this as you are, but I want to get to know my brother… hell, I want a brother! Don't you want the same? Someone to call family? Who will stand by your side when no one else will?"

For a moment he remained there looking at me with a… not shocked, rather surprised face, before his eyes watered and he flung himself at me, crying his eyes out and begging me to forgive him, and I just let him take everything out until he was done, correct in my thinking that he would end drained by the end of it, so I placed him properly on his bed, since he was still hugging me, and stood up to leave him to sleep, but his hand quickly found my wrist and with a mumble of _"please stay" _he pulled me back to the bed, me letting him do it and picking my new guitar.

"You don't mind if I play a song? There was one more I wished to try today."

He just shook his head so I placed my hand over the cords and started playing the one song that would always lift my spirits up.

"_Black bird singing in the death of night, take this broken wings and learn to fly, all your life, you were only waiting for this moment to arise"_

He snuggled closer to where I was sitting and let out a content sigh.

"_Black bird singing in the death of night, take these sunken eyes and learn to see, all your life, you were only waiting for this moment to be free… Black bird fly, Black bird fly, into the light of the dark black night"_

His breath evened out, and a content smile appeared on his face, making me also smile.

"_Black bird fly, black bird fly, into the light of the dark black night."_

Seeing that Naruto was snuggled next to me I just sighed and placed the guitar on a side, laying properly on the bed and closing my eyes, thinking about all I would go through the next day, both there and here.

The next day, in the world that knows me as Rodrigo I overslept, again, and arrived late to classes… again… but I could not concentrate a bit because, well, in the world that knows me as Menma my brother could wake up in the middle of the night and I would not be there to keep him calm, and seeing that we just went through an emotional moment, and those tend to make one things he usually wouldn't, me being on his bed might freak him out and send everything back to square one.


	9. Naruidea - suicide reincarnation

I guess the most accurate word to describe me would be "Zombie", and not because of the brain-eating brand but because of the "undead" one… I mean I'm sure I died, I personally made sure that was the case, and yet here I am; tiny, unable to move freely, hungry, confined to a shared crib, painfully aware of my current toddler status and _not dead!... _Unless the afterlife is actually reincarnation, and by some bug I retained my consciousness. Or perhaps everyone is aware for some time of who they were on their _new _early years and then forget at some point as they grow? Ugh, this situation is so bizarre-

"Uwaaaaaaa!"

And there he goes again, surely still hungry by the way his stomach is grumbling… I have been demanding food the same way for a bit now, able to hold back the hunger for a bit longer, but nobody has even bothered to check on us.

I try to calm him, say soothing words and pet his hair but my arms lack coordination with my brain and words come out like gurgles, it's quite frustrating, but at least I managed to grab his hand, the motion managing to distract him enough to stop his crying and look at my hand with curious blue eyes.

It warms my heart to know at least I can still help others, as pointless as delaying his hunger might seem, and takes a load off my chest to know another toddler won't take advantage of that kindness.

Perhaps I should be more worried about my current situation, I know, but I had already made peace with whatever would wait for me on the other side when I decided to take the easy way out since there's only so much a nice guy can tolerate.

It was nothing messy, it would have been harder for everyone else if I picked the razor blades over the sleeping pills at the drugstore… ironic that the words that finally triggered me were "sleep it off"

I was 26, broke and alone when the deed was done, forgotten by a cruel world in the smelly room of a love hotel - all my miserable appearance managed to get me for the night - thankfully not leaving behind wife or kids, nor parents, but a loving brother and sister that were too busy to keep tabs on the younger of the trio.

Each had their own family and problems to take care of, they didn't need me to worry them even more… they did told me I was too trusting of others for my own good when said trust cost me our childhood house, and thankfully they weren't around when I lost everything else I inherited due to debts, but I always had a hard time saying no… or maybe I was too much of a coward to stand up for myself and deny my "friend's" calls for help.

Once a coward, always a coward.

"Uwaaaaaaa"

There we go again… better join him this time, maybe then someone will finally notice us, dwelling too much in the past would do no good anyway, procuring some food should be priority at the moment, but something tells me the caretakers will take some more time before even checking on us… after all the baby next to me is Naruto Uzumaki, and if memory serves me well I should be prepared for another world full of backstabbing people.

I did say I was ready for whatever came, so maybe this is my punishment for taking the easy way out, with the bonus of being in charge of protecting an abused child, given that apparently I'm his brother.


	10. Naruidea - Superhero AU

Sighing softly she leaned on the rail of the balcony, watching the sunset bathe the city in front of her with an orange light, making her feel warm inside, despite the fact that the breeze was not cool anymore, but rather chilly.

Winter was almost upon them.

"Winter…" she whispered with a mix of feelings tinting her voice. Half of it was tenderness, towards a memory rooted deeply in her mind, one that made her who she was today, and a certain someone who she would never thank enough.

But the other half was filled with sadness, not for her, but for… _him._

"Will I ever see that smile again?"

"You might if you turn around" a soft whisper came from behind, startling her, and in reflex making her head shot backwards to headbutt whoever was there.

"My, my" the voice tutted now from over her, "You must be in looove with my smile to just notice me once I was already behind you" it sounded very amused and a tad bit mocking, but instead of making her angry it just made her roll her eyes and crack an amused smirk.

"I knew you cared"

"I care about you as much as I would care for a stray cat" She answered playfully to the floating boy hovering now in front of her.

"Me-ouch! Your words wound me princess"

Now she narrowed her eyes slightly annoyed.

"DON'T call me princess"

"As you wish..." he said still grinning, and she looked for the nearest thing at arm's reach "...princ- Whoa! Was that a plant pot?"

"Told you~"

The boy just sighed and scratched his head, ruffling even more his already messy hair, a combination of blonde and red that in the distance looked orange.

"You girls sure are complicated, some wish to be called-" her glare - and the possibility of another thing being thrown towards him - made him pause there "-like that, but you…"

"I'm not like any other girl, if you haven't noticed" she said in a deadpan tone

"Sure you aren't, madame" she narrowed her eyes again "Hey! It's not that other word! Cut me some slack here!" she blew air through her nose in irritation but let it go, making the boy grin again.

"Well, what brought your leather-clad self here? There isn't an attack going on, is it?"

Now it was his time to give her a deadpan look.

"You think I would be here, so comfortable with you, if there was an attack going on?"

"Well, there was this time-"

"That was a rhetorical question, and that happened just once!" He said now sporting a light embarrassed blush.

"Anyway, you still haven't answered my question" she started tapping her foot to add effect to her impatience - not that it really bothered her, she had nothing better to do at the moment.

For a moment those red slitted eyes softened, and looked almost… sorry? And he looked to a side scratching his neck, but the next second the usual wild playfulness that shone on those orbs returned, along with some bashfulness that was only there when…

"You have been stalking me again, haven't you?" Even if it was posed as a question, the tone and face she made - rather facepalm she made - make it be more of a statement.

The way he flinched like a kid who was caught with the hand in the cookie jar was enough answer for her, but instead of getting angry she found herself, once more she noted, just sighing and rubbing her temples in annoyance, more bothered by how others would think about seeing their hero using his powers to stalk her rather than being annoyed by the act itself.

She shouldn't be so comfortable around him.

"I still don't know how nobody has noticed you jet-"

"Besides you~"

"-if you're always floating around in neon orange!"

Seriously, that… whatever it was that looked like leather bodysuit was already enough eye-catching by itself with the bright color and the fluffy tail-like… belt? Ugh, why he had to be dressed so… weirdly?

A tiny part of her mind she refused to hear had to admit he looked preeeeetty good on it.

"Were you living under a rock? Orange is the new black!"

"Says who?"

"Why, me of course!"

She just rolled her eyes.

"It was the jerk again, wasn't it?"

She knew he was right, and she knew who _the jerk_ was, but…

"It was not his fault!"

"I was there, remember?" he said softly, finally landing next to her and placing a hand on her shoulder "True, he may not have noticed it, or maybe he didn't meant it, but the fact that he's a stuck up snob who ignores everyone around him remains."

"He wasn't like that"

"How you know that?"

"I- I just-"

"How cute" he said softly and playfully "I made you stammer"

She blushed deeply - and she hated him for being able to do that to her - and was about to punch his smug face, but that smile, and those _cute_ whisker-like marks on his cheeks… Why he had to have those cute things there!

"Don't you have any heroic thing to do in the city?" She asked turning around with a huff.

"Oh, you honor me calling me a hero, when I'm nothing but a mere sidekick" he answered doing a grand bow.

"I think that title befalls better upon me Kitsune" an even, if amused, voice said from behind them "Good afternoon cousin"

The loud "Neji!" the fox-themed hero shouted drowned the soft "Good afternoon Neji-niisan"

"Dude, don't downplay yourself so much!


	11. Naruidea - Adopted son

Won't lie, -no reason to- I've always been a sucker for kids. Lil' buggers always got me ol' dark heart beating again.

Funny thing, I could imagine it withered and dry, just like the grinch's heart, then suddenly it would start bumping again everytime a chibi gave me the puppy eyes, me unable to stop from transforming into a stupid puddle of goo ready to do anything to please the diabetically sweet kid(s).

So, the reason I'm writing this? Well, my sweet, sweet grandchild Boruto (more of a hassle than his father was) somehow convinced lil' Himawari, and his father, to pull the very same trick that made him my grandchild so many, many years ago. (Naruto was cute, more than Himawari, when he was 3)

When my -adoptive- son, and his two kids, entered my office demanding me to write a book about my -and Naruto's, because, like I said, kids are my weakness and I couldn't just leave the poor kid/potential weapon of mass destruction alone, and being around him was almost all I did since I arrived here- life… well, I couldn't resist the triple dose of pouts and big, watery eyes.

How a 30-and-something year old could pull the same effect of a pair of kids is beyond me, and I raised the guy.

So, yeah…


	12. Naruidea - Boruto rage

_-poof-_

_-splat-_

The silence that followed in the Uzumaki household was deafening, the mood changing in an instant from cheerful and proud to shocked and disappointed.

"He… he didn't… not even…"

Hinata knew what was going inside the head of her firstborn, because she also felt it, but not a second later it was replaced with the dull resignation that sometimes - and that sometimes was an almost always as of late - her husband would not be there for his family as much as he used to be because being Hokage was a responsibility with the whole village so the peace they had enjoyed for so many years could endure many more to come.

Naruto was almost literally carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders, and he would never delegate that responsibility to anyone because… well, because that's who Naruto is; he would rather do it alone so no one else would have to worry about it, and oh Kami she loved her husband for that hearth of gold, but their children…

Himawari looked more sad than disappointed, and she suspected her little girl understood more of the situation than what she let show… it saddened her, but also made her feel very proud of her.

Boruto on the other hand… she knew her son loved his father, much more than he would admit, but the sudden absence Naruto's new position brought had hit him harder than the rest of the family, and he had grew bitter and resentful of the Hokage title. It reflected clearly on his face at the moment, all the anger, frustration, dissapointment, helplessness, and sadness she was sure he would unleash on a rant about how Naruto didn't cared about his family anymore, and how he would rather be working instead of celebrating his daughter's birthday.

It was a visage that reminded her of a less mature, and more passionate young Naruto… she could almost hear his younger self shout at him about how he would kick his ass for neglecting his family so much. Sadly she doubted Boruto would appreciate her commentary about his likeness with his father at the moment, so holding a sigh she opened her mouth, trying to save them more drama for tonight, while she started to pick up the ruined cake from the floor.

"Boruto, I know how bad you feel right now, but please try to calm down before you say something you might regret."

Her son jumped after hearing her voice, but then furrowed his eyebrows, still upset.

"But he-"

"Boruto, _please" _and gave a small nod with her head in the direction of Himawari, ho was still watching the spot where "Naruto" was standing some minutes ago.

The struggle was evident, but in the end he sighed and only nodded.

"I'll go out for a bit then, to walk or whatever."

She nodded and gave him a small thankful smile, that also made him smile a little.


	13. Character sheet - protagonist

Character sheet - Protagonist (?)

Type of character: Protagonist / Co-Protagonist

Character's name: Neku Davis (Uzumaki?)

Goal: Find what he/she wants to be (first arc)

Flaw: Insecurity (relies too much in older people to make major decisions rather than in herself)

Age: 9 -10 (first arc)

Sex: Female (for now)

Height: 130 cm

Weight: 28 kg

Race: Oriental with some American features

Hair Color: Reddish brown

Eyes: Deep blue eyes

Grooming: Shoulder-long hair most of the time kept on a ponytail for convenience's sake, never uses makeup or strong fragrances of perfumes, likes to remain active so all she really cares about is not getting dirty into bed.

Clothing: Normal civilian clothing (T-shirts, shorts, sandals and very rarely dresses and skirts)

Health issues: None known

Physical abilities: Took off much from his parent who practiced physical activities alien to the village but she enjoyed developing with him (Swimming styles, 1 v 1 basket, aerobics) so she has good stamina for her age and is able to keep up with some of the older kids in the academy.

Speech: Her father instructed her in the common language of the village (Japanese is my guess) besides another language (english) he insisted she learned and encouraged to teach to others once she was capable to and found someone she wished to teach.

Parents: William Davis (father) and Tsubaki Uzumaki (?) (mother)

Siblings: None

Friends: Haru Tanaka (male - kind and shy, soft spoken), Kaito Tanaka (male - easygoing, supportive, brash) and Yuuto Takahashi (male - strong, competitive, jealous)

Best friend: None at the beginning, even if good friend with the other boys, later Naruto Uzumaki.

Least favorite people: Funny enough, girls. Not because of sexual preferences but because of her upbringing (her mother dying while she was still a baby due to an _accident_ leaving her father to look out for her) she is basically a tomboy and that scares the other girls due to her relatively rude interactions, and in retaliation she prefers to keep away from them.

Enemies: Ichika Sato (Female - arrogant and vain, great social pressure because of her family) and her friends

Pets: A non-ninken Inuzuka pup called Sora

Residence: Two store house she shares with a civilian relative of her mother, she occupies the second floor (mostly just her room and sometimes her parent's room she still keep)

Neighborhood: Near the border of the civilian district of Konoha

Cultural background: Most of her home-education comes from his father until the age of 7 (almost 8) when he died due to sickness, and he was nothing like the norm, always talking about strange topics that she found fascinating but others found too alien (mostly american culture), then under her mom's relative she learned more about the elemental nation's history.

Religion (and attitudes about religion): Shinobi villages are not too keen on teaching about religion due to the nature of their main population, and even if some civilian families do care about it Neku never was too pushed to learn about it, but she was taught about compassion, kindness and camaraderie she relates to some gods from _far away lands_ she heard his father tell her about as she grew.

Memberships: Citizen of konohagakure no sato, student of the mixed civilian-shinobi class of the academy due to her above average overall grades in the civilian school (not by much)

Schooling: Basic civilian schooling with good grades, currently on the civilian-shinobi program.

Attitude toward school: She doesn't like it much because her friends are still in the civilian school but there she learns more about other things the civilian school would never teach, and her father made sure to instill in her a healthy dose of curiosity and desire for learning new things that catch her interest.

Popularity: She mostly keeps to herself unless around her friends so she is not popular, but has no problems making her opinion be known.

Mentors:

Heroes:

Favorite sports:

Work experience: None

Hobbies:

Likes and dislikes (music, movies, tv, etc):

Fears:

Dreams:

Life goals (in 5, 10 years):

Nervous habits:

Foibles (weaknesses/failings):

Reasoning style:

how would your character's friends describe him/her?

How would your character complete the sentence "My life is-"

Other things I thought about while filling this form:


	14. KH idea - brainwash Sora

For the first time since his adventure started, Sora felt fear.

Now, he _had _been afraid before. When the islands were lost to the darkness the first time, when Riku turned to the darkness, when he Kairi was kidnapped by Axel, when Goofy… there were multiple stances when Sora was afraid.

The point here is that, on each of those moments, he was afraid for others. For their safety, for their whereabouts, but never for himself.

That is, until now.

"H-hey, let me go! You said it yourself, you work for the light! Well, so do I, I'm the-"

"Boy who wields the keyblade… one of seven walkers of the light, I know."

The voice was kind, warm, and even a little innocent, and Sora thought he was a good guy, but now he was trapped, and without a way to fight back.

"Then let me go!"

"I'm sorry, but I can't do that… I am aware of the danger that is looming over us at the moment, the sleeping worlds have been directly compromised because of _that man_."

There was a tint of sadness, and a downcast expression on the face of the other guy, as if talking about Xehanort pained him.

"Then you must know that he needs to be stopped! Let me go!"

The man eyed him for a moment, his gaze intense under the bangs of blue hair framing his face, and the scar on one of his eyes gave his a look of wisdom…

"I sense something inside you… almost… familiar…" then he shook his head "I am sorry, the time I have spent locked away in this echo of my old home has only eaten away memories I'm sure were once important."

Sora was about to speak again, but was silenced when the white-robbed man extended his hand and, in a flash of light, a keyblade appeared.

"I can only recall that Xehanort must be stopped at any cost, and I could feel him following you throughthis void of sleeping worlds, then you just… vanished. I don't know why he was after you, but you must posses something he wants."

Then he pointed the keyblade at him.

"N-no! Please, my friends… we are working to stop him! You can't kill me!"

The man lowered his keyblade and gave him a curious look.

"I don't intend on harming you" he said confused "but I need someone to help me fight against him. I can't leave this limbo until this world is released from the sleeping worlds, but you on the other hand… you can enter and leave this plane at will, and that can be useful, indeed."

"I can unlock this world then! I have done that before!"

"I'm afraid you won't be able to do it. A boy has to free this world, true, but it is not you."

The keyblade was once again pointed at him, and it started to glow this time.

"What are you going to do?!"

"Like I said, you have something that Xehanort wants, so I will have it first. I will have to erase your memories though."

Sora's blood froze.

"Why? I can help! You don't need to do that!"

"What I have in mind… it may break the rules between worlds, but in desperate times, desperate meassures. Besides, you may be willing to cooperate, but not everyone you know may be so willingly ready. Don't worry, it won't hurt, and it won't be permanent. Once Xehanort is defeated I will restore your memories, and all this will be like it never happened."

Sora was ready to say something else, anything, to stop this man, but as the light from the keyblade became brighter he slowly felt the worry, the fear, everything, fade away.

Why was he afraid in the first place?

Oh, true, his homeland had fallen to the darkness, but somehow ended in the sleeping worlds.

Why was he worried?

His master… he had been looking for him too, because they had to stop Xehanort, but his master had been lost along with his homeworld.

With the help of the keyblade he had traveled through many worlds, searching for him, and now they could find a way to fight against Xehanort.

Right?

Chains made of light faded from his wrists and legs, and the keyblade lying on the floor faded, but he didn't noticed it, his brain still reconnecting all that had happened, and how he made it here.

It was a bit fuzzy still, but he guessed it was because of the sudden black out he had.

Why he had a black out?

"I see you finally regained consciousness, student."

"Hehehe, sorry master" he answered sheepishly, a hand scratching the back of his head.

"Don't worry" he said with a kind smile "We are still on time to prepare for the comming fight."

He just nodded as he rose from the ground.

"What I will ask of you might go against what I once taught you, but the dire circumstances are forcing my hand. You are to leave this world-"

"But master! I've just arrived! We still need to leave and unlock our world from the sleeping plane!"

"I understand your worry" his master answered while ruffling his hair "but sadly that has become of lesser priority. I hope you can understand."

He looked downcast, but, even if reluctantly, nodded.

"Good. Now, what I need from you… damn you Xehanort for forcing my hand" he was surprised, his master _never_ cursed "you have to go to other worlds, foreign worlds, and gather a group of people who's light can help us fight against the darkness that looms on the horizon."

He was speechless.

"B-but master… the world order…"

His master kneeled before him and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I know I ask a lot from you, but our options are short, and I doubt there is much else left for us to do."

His eyes filled with determination, he nodded and gave him a confident smirk.

"Don't worry master, I've got this."

"Before you leave, there is something I think you have finally earned."

Pointing his keyblade to the sky, master started muttering words, and an orb of light started to grow and grow, and after some more seconds he lowered the keyblade and the orb of light flew towards him.

At first he felt nothing, but then some extra weight was placed on his shoulder.

"This gift will follow you beyond the sleeping worlds, and will help you fight back the darkness that will threaten you between the worlds… this gift marks a new stage on your journey, for it is a sign that you no longer hold the title of student, but that now you are my equal. Now rise Master…"

Master… he was finally a keyblade master… true! His master always called him just student, so he didn't really knew his name, right?

He was about to say Sora, but then his mouth moved on its own.

"My name is Ventus, but evwryone call me Ven."

That was his name? Well, it has to be, right?

"Very well Master Ventus, you may call me Master Eraqus."

Ventus couldn't contain his joy, he was finally a Master of the keyblade! Master Eraqus had deemed him worthy of the honor!

"Don't worry Master Eraqus, I will not fail you!" And on instinct he slammed the gold and silver pauldron on his shoulder, encasing him on a golden and silver keyblade armor, and threw his keyblade to the air, transforming it on his glider.

With a final wave he was gone, ready to acomplish his mision.

Back on ground, Eraqus' happy face fell, and a sigh escaped his lips.

"I hope you can forgive me boy, I know it's not fair for you, and your memories showed me how much you went through, and even if you do deserve to become a master this was not the way, but this is for the greater good…"


	15. KH idea - betrayal

It's been a year already… sometimes I wonder how are the people back at the islands, after all the struggle that I went through to make sure it was safe…

For them…

Then I remember why I'm here right now, and it becomes just a tiny voice in the back of my mind.

Now don't get the wrong idea, It's not like I hate my birthplace, or the people who live there, but all that once gave the meaning to that tiny world in my heart is either gone, or broken.

Wow, that sounded quite dark, but no worries, I'm not becoming evil or anything like that, it's just that I'm still hurt… sometimes the pain takes my head to some dark places, but my friends here, and that special someone who keeps me happy, manage to bring me back every little time.

Things went south a year ago, exactly on this very same night.

Riku, Kairi and I were doing some last minute christmas shopping, since Riku's parents allowed us to pass the night on their house.

Maybe they also felt I would apreciate the company, since otherwise I would have spent the night alone at home.

Mom had passed away during the last year I was away, and all left there were our memories… it made me sad I almost hated returning to home everyday after school.

Kairi's dad, being the mayor, took care of that himself, said he owed that, at least, to the heroes of the island.

Yeah, we told them everything, and even showed them the keyblades, to justify our long absence.

It was funny, how we had faced Xehanort and all the old coot sent our way, and we were more afraid of our parents lecturing and grounding us rather than loosing our hearts in the fight… or at least Riku and Kairi were, in my case…

-sigh-

Anyway, I was really excited, because this was the very first christmas I would celebrate after meeting Santa, and I really wished to see him again tonight, but Riku kept saying that I was making everything up, and Kairi kept giggling at our bickering.

Everything was great, and I really was grateful to my friends for all the effort they were putting on making me company.

I even got Riku to help me plan a romantic way to finally tell my feelings to Kairi!

All the threats were finally dealt with, so I was no longer afraid of not returning to the islands if anything went wrong in another world, and could finally hope to be more than friends with her.

That night I realized maybe I took too much time to act.

Riku's parents had gone out to a party with other married couples and wouldn't be back in a while, so I asked Riku to distract Kairi while I went to get a special present I found for her, and what I planned to tell her.

I was a nervous mess, and I would't be surprised if I forgot my name during the declaration.

So I ran home to get the present, wished a merry christmas to mom, and back to Riku's house, were he would have gotten her to the outside door, allowing me to surprise her, or at least that was the plan.

Instead, when I arrived I found Riku kissing Kairi right at the door, mistletoe hanging over them.

The same mistletoe he was suposed to place on top of me and Kairi so I could get mi first kiss with her.

The box with the wayfinder-shaped necklace I found for her fell to the floor, the glass figure shattering on the ground, and for a moment I wondered if my heart was what sounded there.

It wouldn't had surprised me.

The sound was almost lost in the street, but for them I guess it sounded like a bomb, because the next second Riku was separating himself from Kairi with wide eyes, while she glanced between me and him, and as if finally realizing what was happening, her hand flew to her mouth as she stared at me with wide eyes.

I just let the speech fall to the floor and turned, walking the way back home, too numb to do anything else besides staring blankly at the road before me.

Someone was talking frantically by my side, and someone was crying at the other, I even felt myself being pulled, turned or even yelled at, but I couldn't hear anything, or recognize who was talking to me… it was weird, nothing mattered right now, I just needed to go home, besides that everything was a huge blank.

At some point I may have reached home and sat in front of the TV, because the next morning I found myself covered with a blanket, lying on the sofa and with the TV turned on.

On the cofee table was a little note.

"_I'll return tomorrow with Kairi, we need to talk. Riku"_

Everything came back, but sadly this time there was no numbness, and all the hurt, the betrayal, the pain that my best friend had done that the very same night, in the very same place I planned to finally…

I didn't wished to talk, everything was clear,


	16. KH idea - dark topic

"Heeeey, Sora!"

The brunet turned towards to origin of the voice, curious about why it sounded so familiar, not noticing the frown that appeared on the face of the blond sitting across him.

"Kairi!" he bubbled with delight, his face lighting up like the christmas tree he was decorating with his friend, any awareness of the serious conversation Roxas hoped to have with him, or the fragile present that slipped from his hand, fleeing from his mind as he focused on hugging the air out of his childhood-maybe-still crush.

"Kairi! When did you- since when-? How?! Wow… it's just… wow, to see you again, for Christmas I mean."

If she noticed his blush, she decided to ignore it.

He, however, did notice hers, and that just helped in making his own deepen.

They stayed like that, in an awkward silence, for a few seconds before Kairi spoke again.

"Sooo, how things have been going in the islands?"

"Great, actually. The winter break started today and, somehow, I even got better grades this year!"

She giggled at that.

"Amazing, the lazy bum managed to get his grades past the strict minimal. I'm amazed I got to see such a day!"

The teasing tone she used made him pout.

"I always could! It's just that I never wished to…"

"Of course Sora" she said in a warm, even if skeptical, tone with a roll of her eyes "What were you doing before I arrived?"

"Oh, true" He said, just remembering about the other person in the room "I was decorating the christmas tree with Rox-...as?"

He trailed off when he realized that the spot his friend was previously occupying was now empty.

"Roxas? He's here?"

"Yeah… or at least he was…"

"I've been curious about him, since he's all you talk about nowadays."

With a frown he scanned the whole room, slightly worried that he didn't even hear him leaving. The other doors were locked, especially the kitchen one, just for him to keep an eye on Roxas, so he couldn't have left the house.

Could he?

They both walked towards the tree after making sure Roxas was nowhere near, and mentally cursed when he saw the small key-shaped ceramic decoration now lying broken on the floor, remembering the embarrassed face his friend had when he gave it to him.

Maybe it was his imagination, but Roxas also looked somewhat torn about something, besides dead serious about talking with him.

Right before Kairi's sudden entrance, that made him forget about Roxas, and what he held in his hands, due to the excitement of seeing one of his best friends after almost two years.

Now that he thought about it…

"Kai… how did you enter my house? Dad and mom are out buying things for dinner, and they won't be back for a while."

"Oh, I went to Riku's first and he told me I should give you a surprise, so he told me about the hidden key outside your door" she answered innocently, so she jumped in surprise when Sora suddenly cursed in a loud voice.

"Hey Kai, sorry but I have to leave, uhhh, but I'll be back! So you just get comfortable! There's… uhhh… cookies in the kitchen, and the TV! Just wait for a bit, okay?"

Not even waiting for an answer he picked a jacket that was lying nearby and run outside, hoping against hope that Roxas was safe, and that what he, unconsciously, did to offend him didn't push the blond to do something stupid.

Kairi just watched him go, confused about what just happened, and picked the pieces of the broken decoration, trying to put them together again, when she saw there was something written on them.

The small text there made her eyes widen in surprise, and turning to the door, now closed since Sora just left, she couldn't help but wonder just how much had really changed since she left her childhood home two years ago.

Ever since he was forced to move to the islands, the only spot he could really enjoy being in was this small patch of land.

Sitting on the bent palm tree and watching the sun go down… the place was different, but the sight gave him a sense of familiarity that, for the fleeting minutes he spent there, Roxas almost felt at home.

Almost.

He missed his… _family_, back in his childhood town, and how easily he used to laugh back then…

His uncle Lea, who prefered being called Axel for some stupid reason he could not remember, had told him once that the sunset looked red because that was the color that traveled the fastest, or something like that. The face he made when the answer to the fact was a nonchalant shrug made him laugh so hard his sides started to hurt.

He was such a know-it-all.

Xion would have had a field day on this beach, with all the tiny, multi colored shells that littered the sand. She was so afraid of the idea of people forgetting her that she devised a plan… she would make charms with those shells and gift them to anyone she ever met, so they would have to remember who made it every time they saw it.

He still had his somewhere in his room.

Hayner, Pence and Olette… those three were always trying to get the other orphans on their crazy trips or adventures - their own idea of campaments - and he would always try to help them.

He even volunteered to get pretzels for their next trip, which would have been to a beach, and helped gather money for it by doing chores for other people.

With a shaky hand Roxas reached for a pretzel from the bag on his right pocket, not really hungry, but eating the snack for their sake, thinking about how sad it was that he was the one on a beach right now, eating pretzels… alone.

He just knew they would have loved to visit this beach too.

Memories of more people he once lived with filled him with more sadness, reminding him how much he had lost already.

Uncle Rould, and his obsession with gambling.

Uncle Even, always fumbling in the kitchen 'creating science'.

Uncle Aeolus, always on the gym, trying to outdo himself every day and 'gain more power'.

Uncle Ienzo, always with a book on his hand, be it for personal lecture or to read a story to them.

Aunt Arlene, and her desire to personally see a thunderstorm one day… she was weird, but it was a good weird.

Uncle Arlumia, and his love for his roses… and his pink hair.

Uncle Dilan, and his strange wind devices.

Uncle Dyme, always 'bothering' others with his Sitar.

Uncle Isa, silent and somewhat cold, but always ready to protect them with a fierceness worthy of a berserker.

Finally, uncle Xehanort. Always serious, always composed, always distant… but with a heart so big he did all in his hands, and then some more, to make their stay at the orphanage a good one, until the day they would be adopted.

Maybe they were not related by blood, but they, both caretakers and the other orphans, were his family.

"You may be nobodies" he remembered Xehanort told them once "Forgotten, abandoned, or victims of a tragedy. But you, like everyone else, deserve to regain that part of your heart that was ripped away, or was never present. That is the goal of this… organization. We twelve will do our best so you, now nobodies, become somebodies again one day."

He bit the pretzel again, but this time it felt wet and even more salty… Lea chided him for crying, every time also doing something stupid to make him smile.

The pain all these memories brought him only fueled his depression, already on high levels thanks to Sora, and steeled his resolve for what he had planned on doing here.

"I should be happy, I guess" he spoke to the air, recording on his mind how the setting sun was almost gone in the horizon, giving way to the dark sky of the night. It was a wonderful sight to leave with.

Then, with a long sigh he took something small and metallic from his left pocket.

"I'll be joining you guys for dinner today, after all. Wonder what Even will make this time."

And red liquid oozed from his wrist as he applied some pressure to the pocket knife.

The first place Sora raced to was Roxas' house, aware Cloud and Tifa were out also doing last-time shopping, and that he would be free to loot for something harmful without anyone to stop him.

The blond used to suffer from severe depression, and was just starting to get better… he had told him once he was afraid of him, or Riku, who were the only people his age that would spend time with him, were not true with their friendship, and that it was only out of pity, and that one day they would grow tired of him.

_Great timing,_ he thought bitterly, _for me to plain ignore him the exact moment he was about to tell me something important, and then break his gift when Kairi arrived. Now he must be thinking I actually got bored of him. Damn. Damn. DAMN!_

When he first saw him at school he thought Roxas was just shy, being transferred all the way from Twilight Town to the islands, not knowing anyone around him and all that. But then came the rumours, and that made him want to know more about him.

"_Did you hear? That's the guy who burned the orphanage where he lived in! In christmas!"_

"_I heard he hated everyone there, that's why he broke the gas pipe."_

"_No, no. I heard he poured something in their drinks to make them sleep, and then set everything on fire."_

Rumours went on like that, with even more cruel claims about how he _murdered_ the people he lived with, but… there was something off about that…

The way he acted, how he tried to avoid being in the spotlight - and failing miserably - it was not how he expected a cold blooded murderer to act.

It was like the rest of the people was trying to force a puzzle piece to fit where it didn't belongs. So he googled the incident, and according to the investigations, the real story had nothing to do with the rumours that spread like wildfire at school.

Roxas was actually out of the orphanage when the fire occurred, buying pretzels for a trip he was planning with some friends according to his own testimony, and even if the evidence was vague, it pointed towards a regular-sized stash of fireworks found inside the ruins of the building. That made the police theorize that one of the younger kids found it by accident, and managed to lit one indoors, creating a chain reactions with the others gathered there.

When questioned why the fireworks were stored inside the building, the surviving kids said that one of the caretakers had promised them a fireworks show for the christmas eve, and some of the other kids were talking about finding the pyrotechnics inside his room and steal one or two for themselves.

All of the caretakers, and some of the older kids, had stayed behind to make sure the others could escape, but then it became too hard for them to get out and got trapped inside while the building burn up.

How many of his classmates already knew this, but kept bullying Roxas anyway?

After learning all that, Sora decided to befriend the blond, not out of pity, but because he could see Roxas needed a friend urgently.

At first Roxas was weary of him, always keeping his distance, and his answers short, avoiding him as soon as he entered the same room. It took almost four months for Roxas to, at least, reply his greetings and not cringe and escape every time he tried to sit next to him on classes.

Two months following that he was finally answering Sora with more than just clipped _yes _and _no_, and three months later he, finally, made the blond smile a bit.

He felt so proud of that achievement with the closed up boy that he couldn't stop himself from hugging Roxas while laughing.

The fact that, after the shock wore off, he returned the hug, albeit with less enthusiasm, only boosted Sora's confidence in him doing the right thing.

He had lost many… _friends_ in his quest for the blond's but it was fine. If they alienated Roxas despite knowing the truth of his tragedy, or blindly followed others without even _asking_ first, then they were not really worthy of being called friends.

Ever since that day they became close friends, and Roxas opened up to him, retelling his life in Twilight Town and going into great detail about how each of his friends used to be.

And some time later, in one of his blue days, he confided him what he did to himself when he was alone.

Now he understood his reluctance to wear short-sleeved clothing.

He had been horrified when he saw the scars on his arms, just barely stopping himself from screaming his head off… he had a family, friends, people who cared for him! How could he be so selfish and do that to himself when, if something ever went wrong, he would put others through so much suffering?

How would HE cope with losing Roxas, now that he discovered how good of a friend the blond was?

But at that moment his friend was vulnerable, revealing one of his darkest secrets to him, and a lecture was the last thing on his head. Roxas was asking for help, and help he would receive.

Cloud and Tifa were the other only people to ever know about Roxas' problem, and they did got mad at him, but because he never felt confident enough to tell them first, and because they loved him.

They had adopted him, how could Roxas believe they didn't love him, he could not understand.

Sora helped in hiding everything Roxas could use to harm himself again, and kept an eye on him every time he could, which lead to him remaining close to Roxas as much as humanly possible; not that the brunette was bothered by it.

He could see that it was hard for the blond, specially when they had to find professional help, and he could also see the everyday struggle not to rely on his self-inflicted pain to deal with the emotional one, but the progress was there nonetheless, and that made him happy for his friend.

But that was until today, him doing something that re-awakened Roxas' doubts and could possibly send him back to square one.

All thought process froze on Sora's mind when, opening the door to Roxas' room, he found all the sharp, pointy and overall dangerous things Cloud, Tifa and him had hidden in a box on Cloud's room thrown carelessly on the floor.

He was out of the house in the next second, dialing a number on his cellphone, and almost forgetting to lock the front door in the hurry.

"Cloud? Please Cloud, let it be you."

"Yeah, I'm here Sora, what is it?"

"Is Tifa nearby?"

"No, she's buying food... Why you sound so agitated?"

"It's Roxas, the... t-the box was o-out of place… Cloud, I-I think I f-fucked u-up…"


	17. ParaFalls - Dipper medium

He would be lying if he said he wasn't nervous wreck, because he _was. _The buildup to this meeting had been killing him for almost a week now, not really because of whom he would be meeting - Dipper have been the closest thing to a real friend he'd have for the last four years… even if the last time he saw him was four years ago - or where they would meet - he was starting to feel in Gravity Falls like in some sort of home away from home - but rather the reason why.

If what he suspected was true, then his best friend was also a medium.

"N-Norman?"

The voice was so soft he almost missed it, but it was one he recognized immediately.

"Hi Dipper" he said as softly as the greeting of his friend had been, a shy smile forming on his mouth.

Both looked at each other awkwardly for a couple of seconds before the younger of the two ducked his head while scratching the back of his head, an embarrassed blush dusting his cheeks.

"S-sorry, it's just that-"

Dipper closed his mouth at the same time Norman did, his own cheeks now sporting a blush of their own.

"You speak first" again, both said at the same time, shutting their mouths, deciding to keep silent so they would not embarrass themselves anymore, their shy nature rendering them unable to handle the situation.

For the next minutes the only sound around them was that of plates being served and the few customers calmly eating their orders.

"S-sorry" Dipper finally muttered, still not looking at Norman "I didn't mean to bother you."

"Me neither" Norman answered with a little laugh


	18. ParaFalls - Ghost Dipper

"Mabbel!"

The first thought that ran through his mind as soon as his eyes opened was about his sister.

"Mabbel! Where are you!?"

The place he woke up didn't really came as a surprise, forests were at least 70 percent of Gravity Falls, but the problem was that he passed out _not _in a forest, or anywhere near one.

"Oh man, I _knew _this would end bad, but at least Mabbel is fine, right?"

It didn't took him much to discover that the forest was an unknown one, which struck him as odd since he was pretty sure he knew his way through the forests surrounding the Mystery Shack, unless…

He ran, he ran at top speed for what felt like hours never slowing down or resting until he found a road that went downhill, and the visage of a town in the distance.

A town that was definitely _not _Gravity Falls.

He kept running, a thousand theories forming in his head, not letting him notice that even after running a distance worthy of a Marathon, and maybe even more, he was not even winded.

"Welcome to Blithe Hollow, the most haunted town in (state)"

His own words felt like a punch on his guts, leaving him wishing that all this was just a bad dream and that soon he would wake up to his Grunkle's gruff voice calling him and Mabbel to get some of his gruncackes for breakfast before they went cold.

"How did I ended halfway across the country?" He whispered in a disbelieving tone, too overwhelmed to really _try_ to understand what was going on, but allowing his brain to go full on panic mode.

He entered the town, which looked very similar to Gravity Falls in a way that only small towns could, just that while Gravity Falls seemed oblivious to it's supernatural magnet, this place thrived on it, zombies and witches - crones to be exact - being the main topic of what few stores he saw on his way down what looked like the main road of the city.

"Excuse me, could you- sorry, but I need- hey, please I- why is everyone ignoring me!?" He shouted in frustration when everyone just passed by him, not even turning to face him when he asked for help, so he marched towards a group of kids playing nearby, and stood in front of him.

"You there! You will tell me right now how-" and his words died once the kid ran _through_ him while chasing one of his friends.

Dipper just stared, wide eyes and mouth agape, as realization dawned upon him.

"Am I… am I a


	19. ParaFalls - Bill Cypher

Norman never imagined that five words would change his life in such an extreme way.

"_What do I tell mom?"_

He had been in the school's bathroom when the ghost of Mr. Prend- uncle Richard appeared, begging him to take over the responsibility of watching over the witch's tomb and preventing the curse from happening that very same day, to which he agreed because, well, a ghost was begging him, and he had never been one to deny much to the only beings that ever treated him somewhat normal, besides that this specific one was family.

That last reason was why he made the question.

The only living relative member from his mother's side of the family was kind of a taboo topic in his house, with discussions involving him always ending with an angry _"I will not let my son end like that crazy vagabond" _from his dad, and a sad face from his mom, but not a single word from her.

It always struck his as weird, because even as much as he knew he annoyed Courtney she stood up for him… sometimes… so why would his mom say nothing?

"_Who?" he said as he started to disappear in light._

"_Mom… s-she is y-your sister, right?"_

_Like a switch the light spreading through him stopped, all his body returning to the pale green color of a ghost._

"_Yeah… I remember… having a sister… her name was… was..."_

"_Sandra?"_

_That was the first time he ever saw a ghost in pain._

"_Aghhhh!" His uncle howled as he clutched his head "I- I remember her… I remember… Gahhhhh!"_

"_Mr. Prenderghast? W-what's wrong?"_

"_He… he used me- made me forget! No… my family… Sandy… No!"_

_He was really scared, that was the first time he saw a ghost act like that, but still… there was a certain… clarity in the eyes of his uncle where he could only see madness and paranoia before, so he felt compelled to help._

"_W-who are you talking about Mr. Prenderghast?"_

_His head swirled in his direction, and he looked at him as if this was the first time he ever saw him._

"_Norman… oh Norman, I'm so, so sorry…"_

_He hugged his arm and looked to a side, unsure of keeping looking at those remorseful eyes._

"_What are you s-sorry about Mr. Prenderghast?"_

"_Everything… your life must have been a living hell because of me…"_

_After hearing those words he looked up in surprise, noticing how the hunch was gone from the ghost's posture, and that it now radiated an aura of… self awareness? As if whatever was hunting him was finally gone, and he could finally see the world around him._

"_N-not really… at least not because of you."_

_The ghost of his uncle just snorted._

"_What was Perry's last commentary about me? Don't sugarcoat it, please."_

"_W-well…" he started, once again unsure if he wished to continue this conversation "H-he said that you were… well… a-"_

"_Good for nothing vagabond that would be better off with the ghosts that I clame to see?"_

_He just nodded meekly, not looking at the ghost._

"_Figures… that was what he said the last time I visited you."_

"_Y-you used to visit?"_

_A warm smile spread over the ghost's face._

"_Of course! As you can imagine male Prenderghast are… different. I had your mother as I grew up, so I wished to be there for you" His smile lost intensity as he spoke, until it was replaced with a frown "your father always saw me as some kind of pariah, even before… this" he signaled his appearance._

"_W-what happened?"_

"_Bill Cipher"_

_The name was said as if he was trying to get rid of some horrible taste from his mouth._

"_As I grew up" his uncle continued "I discovered that there's so much than only seeing ghosts for us… I won't complicate things for you any more Norman, but know that not everything you see is what it seems. Not every dream is worth a deal."_

"_I don't understand"_

"_I hope you never do… look, I can't remain here for much longer, I can't risk Bill finding me, promise you will read that book to stop the curse, please."_

"_I already did…"_

"_True, true… that's good, you know where?"_

"_No, n-not really."_

"_Find the crooked tree in the crooked forest, read the book at it's base ok?"_

_He just nodded._

"_And… please, tell your mother that Rick is sorry, for everything… you should also take the book to her once you're done with it, she might appreciate it."_

_Once again he just nodded._

"_Well, I should go now… goodbye Norman, sorry for all the troubles I may have caused you."_

"_D-don't worry, it was not your fault. Goodbye uncle Richard."_

"_You called me uncle…"_

_He could not help but also smile as he saw his uncle once again disappear in golden light, the serene smile on his face a complete contrast to the crazed one he saw the first time._

"_Bill Cipher, huh…"_


	20. Ben 10 - Close call

"Goo-for-brains!"

"Nerd!"

"Puke-face!"

"Puke-smell!"

"DWEEB!"

"DOOFUS!"

_-slam-_

_-slam-_

Max just sighed tiredly, already used to his nephews antics with each other, and redirected his whole focus to the road ahead of him now that the argument was over… for now.

That argument, he mused for a moment, sounded similar enough to all the others those two usually had, over the most silly things too.

Over who had to do the dishes and take out the garbage that day.

Over why was Ben's dirty clothing on Gwen's bed.

Over why Ben's face looked like a clown's one when he woke up…

Now _that_ one had been hilarious, Max remembered with a chuckle. He had scolded Gwen for the prank, true, but he couldn't deny it had been quite funny seeing Ben fretting all over the RV looking for something to clean his face with, since Gwen seemed to have also hidden all the towels they had available.

But this time… something was off.

He had not seen what actually happened, too busy with his part of the plan he and Gwen came up with to help Ben to notice what went wrong, just ariving to see that the current villian had already fleed and Gwen was panicking over the unconcious form of Ben on the ground.

For a moment he froze, his mind taking him to similar scenes where the outcome was far more darker than what he fervently hoped was now, and he rushed by Gwen's side to check on Ben, sighing in relief when he found he was just knocked out, no visible sign of physical damage or injury so maybe it was just excertion.

When he questioned Gwen she answered with mumbles and incoherent sentences, the words 'slipped' and 'double use' popping here and there, her lithe form still shivering from a, surely, scary situation Ben saver her from.

She refused to leave Ben's side when he recomended she should take a nap, after asuring her Ben was alright, maybe out of guiltness, and he couldn't find it in himself to denny her that, having passed through similar scenarios on his plumber days, so he left to drive them somewhere they could rest for the night.

Sometimes he forgot they were just kids that stumbled on this whole situation just by accident, with the Omnitrix somehow finding it's way to Ben's wrist, and Gwen actually just being an unfortunate tag along.

They had been fine with this, even to his reluctance at first, but how could he expect something different? A 10 year old boy who finds an alien artefact that allows him to imitate the superheroes on his favorite TV shows, and actually having to use it against real threats that were after said artifact, endangering everyone else in the process of trying to obtain it.

He really had no choice but to accept his nephew's eagerness and try to help him learn how to handle things without letting out his knowledge of the situation.

Things had gone well for a long time, sure with bumps here and there, and with their fair share of close calls, but in the end everything always worked out, because they targetted Ben, and Ben had the Omnitrix, and just because of that he would always beat the bad guy.

It really lulled him into the comfort of believing this the plot of one of the cartoons his 10 year old nephew liked to watch.

But in the process of his past catching up with him and focusing on the mayor threat Ben was always in, he had neglected his worries for Gwen, because she was always by his side, while Ben was in the frontline battling the threat, and he could protect her.

But this was a wake up call.

Ben had managed to protect Gwen from whatever threat, and also managed to scare said threat before he himself became vulnerable.

He was still a 10 year old boy behind the alien DNA the Omnitrix allowed him to tap into, and as resourcefull as he could be, there was so much he could do by his own.

Thinking about it, _really_ thinking about it, they had been really lucky their bouts against all the foes they had faced so far ended the way they did, and they could laugh it off in the night as the 'fight of the day'.

He had tech he could rely on at hand if needed, and the knowledge of how to use it, and Ben had the Omnitrix.

What could he say Gwen had to back on if things got ugly for her?

He doubted a Karate chop would stop Villgax.

Suddenly, what he thought would work out at the start of the summer seemed like a terrible idea.

It would be worse if he called this off, now that they were out in the light. It seemed nobody had the idea to investigate them and find the rest of their family, and he hoped it remained like that, but they did seemed capable of tracking them, so taking them home would end even worse for his family.

He had taken things too lightly, and now he could do nothing but worry in silence in fear of making things worse if he did something rushed.

Right now he could do nothing but pray things kept working out as they had so far, find somewhere to rest for the night, and think.

He would not call this off, but he would not keep things as they were so far. This had been his wake up call, telling him this was not all scripted and things really could go wrong, but his mind was too tired and full at the moment to do so clearly.

That, and he was still driving.

And so he kept driving, his original curiosity about what was off with the way his nephews argued before totally out of his mind as the realization of what was relly going on downed upon him.

For the first time during the whole summer trip, Ben was at a loss about what to think of Gwen.

Of course, he could just tell the same things he always said.

Gross.

Nerdy.

Bossy.

Annoying.

_Dweeb._

But this time he felt… it was confusing, really, with all that had happened earlier with Charmcaster.

He always considered the teenage witch small fry, his uncle Hex always giving him more trouble than she would ever manage to cause by herself, and he had more trouble dealing with Kevin than with the fosil.

Even Gwen managed to take her down before, and she didn't had the Omnitrix!

But this time… something was off. She wasn't taunting him, or yelling how she would steal the Omnitrix from him, she was oddly silent, casting her spells causing panic on a nearby amusement park and summoning her ugly rock monsters.

He tried to annoy her, like he always did, and see if he could get what she was after this time, if any magical artifact, or some weird ingredient for her potions, but all he got was terrified eyes each time he destroyed one of her minions or panicked mumblings when he, as upgrade, managed to jump from atraction to atraction bebore she caused any kind of damage.

"You won't give me that thing on your wrist, right Tennyson?"

It sounded almost as if she was pleading him.

"Nope circus magician reject, the Omnitrix will stay here with me."

"I see…" he could swear he saw a tear escape her "then I have no other option, uncle Hex said so himself…"

She casted another spell, but this time on herself. He expected something else to happen, like wings growing on her back, or her transforming in some kind of monster.

Or maybe just something to make her leave? If her uncle said she would not have another chance then maybe he would send her back to whatever place they came from, maybe back with her parents, and she would be punished, or sent back to the evil magic school?

Did evil guys had summer vacations too?

He knew he wouldn't like to be grounded, so maybe she could escape? He didn't really knew how things worked with evil families, so he just shrugged.

But glowing lines appeared on her clothes and face, her hair also started to glow, and her eyes also became glowing things as her face relaxed.

When she looked at him again there was nothing, no irritation, no fear, no smug face, nothing, her expresion was blank.

Then she tilted her head and pointed a finger at him.

Whatever she sent at him _hurted_, but he didn't felt any injury or hit in his body, and yet it _hurted a lot._

She kept firing those things at him, while he tried to evade them, jumping from anything he could _upgrade_ to the next one, and for the first time, Charmcaster made him feel _terrified_.

And the timer on the Omnitrix had to beep red.

If Upgrade's face could, it would have became white.

When Ben landed on the ground, sweating bullets and as nervous as he had ever been, he tried to stall for time until Gwen and Grandpa Max arrived.

Just now he realized it was a bad idea to leave so fast.

But no matter how much he taunted her, or mocked her, or even begged or tried to joke, she would remain with that glowy, blank face of her and keep fyring those bolts that felt like what he thought would be a bullet.

All the time oddly silent.

It was only when he was cornered, the Omnitrix still recharging, and him almost giving up hope, that he saw Gwen sneak behind the witch, and he couldn't help but brag about it.

His second mistake of the day.

"Well, I tried to warn you, but it seems you run out of luck"

As if the word 'luck' trigered something on her mind, her eyes widdened slightly and she turned 180°, the glow on her hand increasing, and a scowl now on her previously blank face.

Gwen was surprised by this and dropped the box she was going to use to blind Charmcaster and let Ben escape, tripping with her own feet and falling helplessly to the floor.

The glow of the spell increased even more and the lines on her body, along with the hair and eyes lost their glow.

He realized it was his fault, and Gwen would pay for it, and on a desperate instinct he jumped towards her, not realizing the Omnitrix had recharged and also changed him to XLR8.

The spell was fired, but he reached Gwen and covered her with his body, recieving the full impact.

He felt the pain for hours, or at least it felt like that, unaware he was screaming his lungs out, and then everything went black.

When he woke up, he notided that, first, he was back at the rustbucket, and second, it was dark outside.

He tried to move but found that there was something on his lap that would't let him get out of bed, and it took him a couple of seconds to notice it was Gwen.

"Hey dweeb" he said, feeling his throat sore "


	21. Random intro

It was hard, for him, to keep everyone happy… once that had been his goal, true, acting like a clown, goofing just to make others smile… his motivation, you know? I mean, he used to say that at least he would give others what he couldn't get, and that was enough to make him happy.

Except it was not.

For someone as bright as him, life was quite bleak. All his adventures, all the friends he gained, all the praise he recieved… all the weight that was pushed on top of the already heavy luggage he was carrying…

I never meant to change him, like people say, all I wanted to do was help him! To the outside he was this dorky boy who would never be found without a smile or positive thoughts, but I could tell how much he struggled to keep the act.

Nobody knew his mother had left for good, because every month he would make me write letters emulating what she would say from some foreign place she supposedly had traveled to.

Nobody knew that because of that very same previous reason he struggled to find something to eat when he was not at some friend's house, or that he had to resort to pickpocket others to get something to eat, or pay the services of his home.

It was slowly eating him away, and I could just not do something to help him. He had done more than enough to deserve being selfish for once.

Convincing him was not easy, he was far too good for his own good


	22. Depressing reincarnation intro

My whole life, even if not so extremely long - thank the guy who just fired the gun for that - has been… hedonistic, I guess would be the closest thing that comes to my mind.

Not a good one, I gave up hope on good things happening to me a long time ago, maybe I don't deserve them? Some sort of Karma from a past life? Gee, then I was some fucking bastard to had the hand life dealt me this time.

So yeah, living to please myself no matter the consequences was my modus operandi up to this point. Funny enough it's that very life ideology what put me in this precise situation.

I mean, I was not a serial killer, or some sort of gang leader, mafia lord or corrupt politician, too young for that, but take what you want from the wrong people and you get yourself if this kind of problems, and they _do _make you pay, no matter age or gender.

At least they don't discriminate.

Lol.

Anyway, what I mostly did was steal, even when I didn't needed it, just because it was the easiest way to get what I wished… huh, take a handful of years away and that sentence would have changed from _wished _to _needed_, but hey, details.

Who needs 'em.

Sad thing? There won't be anyone there to cry for me, I took away things from everyone I once considered friend, so they just turn their heads from me. At the time I didn't really minded it much, I had what I wanted from them, so it was fine, but now I guess it's a bummer that my body won't be found for at least a couple more days, and then it won't be even be checked out by someone from the morgue, just another number in the toll of victims that pissed off the wrong guy.

A bribe here and there if my murder is ever solved - if ever - and then it would be the end.

Depresing huh?

Strangely enough I don't feel that bad about it… maybe I do deserve it? After all I've been an ass with everyone I've ever met.

Wait, there is actually somuyeone who would cry for me, if she ever knew I died.

Don't know why, but she would stick to me like glue even after knowing all I did to live, and would probably keep doing, just because "she knew that was nor really me, but what life made out of me"

Poor thing.

Let me correct one previous sentence, it's just not me throwing the towel on good things happening to me, more like me knowing I didn't deserved to receive good thing from life.

She was just too good for me.

I remember that day was the first time she shouted at me, completely livid, but what came out of her mouth was not what I expected to hear, like, ever.

"_I love you, idiot!"_

See? I always take something from others… even if I don't want to.

The last thing on my mind was not the run down hole I lived in, filled to the top with things any other 18 year old male would kill to get, that once filled me with so much joy, but how those days with her reminded me of a time before I was left alone, when someone actually cared for me.

I always thought it was fake, that a bullet wouldn't make you jump backwards on impact, but apparently at the current distance it does.

My back hit the wall of the alley we were in and the guy fled, leaving me looking like some homeless drunk sitting on the floor, taking a nap against the wall.

"It would be nice-" I thought, as my vision drowned in darkness "-to be taken care of once more… to be loved once more…"

And like that, the story of my life was over.


End file.
